End of a Chapter

"**End of a Chapter**" (1x37) is the 37th episode of Dun-Johns and Dragons.

### **Previously on *Dun-Johns and Dragons***

After Yoolna’s demise, Dugluss left Skip and rejoined the rest of the party on the continent, where they were searching for the kidnapped Prince Durrian. They stopped to spend the night in the town of Steepoint, finding it recently ravaged by a dragon matching the description of the one they fought in Westerhaven. That night, Ira Marsh, an old woman they’d agreed to escort along the way, attacked Magpie and was revealed to be a simulacrum under control of said dragon. The dragon attacked again, killing several townspeople with its acid breath, but the party finally managed to pin it to the roof of the inn and finish it off.

### **Part I**

In the aftermath of the battle, Magpie retrieves Yoolna’s dagger from the pile of ice that had been Ira Marsh and gives it to Dugluss. They also find Ira’s quarterstaff. Stone goes to see if there’s anyone left to help of the townspeople who were hit by the dragon’s acid attack, but there’s not. Tuli tries to shift the dragon corpse off the roof using Watery Sphere, but doesn’t have much luck. It comes crashing down on its own in the night.

In the morning, Tuli makes pancakes and Zander loots some vegetables from the kitchen. Dugluss uses his alchemy set to neutralize the pool of dragon acid so the townspeople can retrieve the remains of their loved ones. The knowledge that they are the ones who killed the dragon has spread, and apart from widespread shock and grief, everyone seems very impressed with them. Zander approaches a townsperson to ask who’s in charge of the cleanup, but over the course of their conversation, lets slip that the party had prior experience with the dragon; the man goes from admiring to suspicious, and accuses them of bringing the dragon down upon their heads. He begins making a scene, but Stone steps in and calms things down. Zander apologizes to the crowd that has gathered, but reception is mixed.

The town elder, Shareese(sp?), approaches and thanks them for killing the dragon. He says the town doesn’t have much, but they will offer them any supplies they can. They thank him for the offer but decline, saying the town seems to need supplies more than they do. Aside, Magpie asks Barakas why the crown isn’t helping the town; he says outlying towns like this are often forgotten by leadership.

Tuli asks if the town has had any trouble from hybrid creatures like the shark-spiders they fought; the elder says there used to be tales of a dark necromancer in the forest at the foot of the mountains — a story to scare children, but perhaps there is some truth to it. At any rate, he says the creatures seem to come from deep within the forest. He suggests they follow the edge of the mountain range, but not venture too far into the forest.

At this point, another individual (Claude) comes up to the elder and tells him the spreading rumor that the party had something to do with the dragon’s return, and says they are not to be trusted. The elder responds that they have risked their lives for a town full of strangers and deserve their thanks. The man grumbles but returns to the crowd. Magpie asks the elder if he’s heard anything about the kidnapped prince; he replies that sounds like politics, which the town has always tried to avoid. Before they leave, Dugluss pulls out a pouch of gold and insists the elder take it for whatever help it can bring to the town. The elder thanks them and bids them good luck.

Before leaving town, they harvest several dragon scales and some dragon meat, and Magpie gets one of its fangs. They put the dragon bits in the Portable Hole and in the process clear out the furniture, Dugluss’ printing press supplies, and all the other random crap they don’t need anymore, leaving the furniture and anything else of potential use with the townspeople. The party gather their things and exchange emotional goodbyes with Dugluss; he heads east toward Dvarri’s Deep, and the rest set out northward.

### **Part II**

The party travels along the foot of the mountains for the day; at dusk, they stop and make camp on the rough ground. Stone casts Tiny Hut and Tuli uses Hearth of Moonlight and Shadow to help hide their campsite. She also plays a tune on her Satyr Pipes (which gives them all inspiration for the next 8 hours). During Magpie’s watch, a mist rolls over the dome. She remembers this happening once before, and it killing Buckitt’s horse. She tries to cast Sleep on Tuli to make extra sure she doesn’t wake up (thus ending her protective spell); Tuli, asleep, doesn’t react. The mist eventually dissipates, and the rest of the night passes uneventfully.

The next day, the terrain begins to turn muddy. As it reaches the others’ ankles, Zander starts struggling as it’s halfway up his shins and he’s having trouble keeping up. Tuli summons her ladybug (named Lady) and casts Giant Insect to make it big; Zander climbs on and they continue through the swamp. After awhile, they hear footsteps squelching toward them. A large, fur-covered shape approaches, and, spotting them, lets out a shout: *“You!”* It is a huge orc, carrying a massive greataxe and wearing a gigantic bear skin. Magpie instinctively uses the Wand of Wonder, but only succeeds in shrinking herself, ending up chest deep in the swamp. Zander flies down and pulls her up onto Lady with him. In broken Common, the Orc introduces himself as Ogbur Bearskin. He is seeking strong allies to help him rebuild his tribe, and has been looking for them specifically since hearing of their victory at the  fighting spectacle in Madmouth. He wants to duel the strongest member of the party as a test of strength to prove himself worthy.

There is some discussion on whom this might be; by sheer strength it should be Stone, but as Zander tends to be the biggest damage-doer in combat, opinion leans toward him. He’s initially not enthused with the idea, but Stone seals the deal, slapping him on the back and saying, “Go easy on him!” (in doing so, giving him Freedom of Movement). The orc, surprised at Zander’s size, exclaims, “Child will duel Ogbur? Strange customs you have!” Zander’s hesitation lessens significantly and he summons Carrot.

Ogbur, raging, initially focuses his attacks on Lady. Beginning with his greataxe, which the others notice has an odd, ethereal glow, he makes a couple swings that go wide of the mark, though he does casually obliterate a small tree on the backswing. Zander casts Hexblade’s Curse on Ogbur and Armor of Agathys on himself, but before he has a chance to attack, Ogbur picks him up by the ankles and tries to use him as a club to hit the ladybug. He misses again, and Zander, thanks to the Freedom of Movement, quickly wriggles free.

Zander makes a hit with Carrot, but doesn’t do much damage. He then sends Lady around behind Ogbur to try and bite him, but she misses. Feeling the tickle behind him, Ogbur whirls around and finally hits the ladybug (who disappears in a puff of sparkles), then continues the rest of the way around and lands a critical attack on Zander, wiping out nearly half his HP in a single blow, and apparently barely feeling the resulting damage from the Armor of Agathys.

Zander uses Thunder Step to get as far away as he can, amusing Ogbur with his speed and mobility, but the orc’s speed allows him to catch up fairly quickly. Zander makes a couple hits with Eldritch Blast, but even with the knockback, Ogbur catches him again and lands another massive hit, knocking him out.

He kneels down to try and stabilize Zander, but Tuli, misunderstanding his intentions, uses Entangle to try and restrain him. It’s not fully successful, but slows him down until the others get near enough to assess the situation. Stone and Barakas both do some healing on Zander, who comes to in a fury; his eyes have a wild look, and his voice as he begins shouting sounds somewhat altered. The others catch the word “mother” in his mostly unintelligible yelling, and before anyone can stop him, he makes another slash at Ogbur with his sword. Ogbur’s expression turns cold and he says, “Duel over. Do not instigate real fight.”

While this is going on, Stone catches a glimpse of a barely-visible shadowy figure standing right behind Zander, mimicking his movements exactly. Stone casts Dispel Good and Evil and tries to use it to use it against the figure, but they can no longer see it and there is no apparent result.

Barakas, speaking in Orcish, says to Ogbur, “Forgive him. It is not easy to be shown your weakness.” Ogbur, taken aback, exclaims, “Oh, you speak my language!” (He is much more articulate in Orcish.) He agrees to not hold it against Zander, and for his part, Zander’s incandescent rage subsides after a successful wisdom throw; he looks around in some confusion, then, seeming to get his bearings, says, “Forgive me, Ogbur — I didn’t know where I was.” Ogbur willingly forgives him and says they would be valuable allies, if they’ll let him join the group. They agree and everyone introduces themselves properly, and then they resume their journey through the swamp.

## **Featured Characters**

### **Player Characters**

* Dugluss Deep-Forge
* Magpie
* Ogbur Bearskin
* Stone
* Tuli Springfoot
* Zander Brushspark