C2 E1

Welcome to the very first episode of Campaign two! We have been waiting for this day for years and wow, it sure feels weird to be level 1 again. Hopefully we don’t die.

The siren call of fate pulls a group of stalwart individuals to the town called Rimeford. Surely this chance encounter will have long lasting ramifications on the realm.

As this is a brand new campaign set within our original world you will not need to have listened to Campaign 1. Sure, there will deeper implications and so forth but we want to be able to welcome as many folks as possible while featuring a fresh experience for long time listeners. Hope you enjoy!

## **Story**

### Long Story

Far to the west of the vast lands of Drunkeros, beyond the Wildlands, past The Crossroads, lies an unknown world. A world locked off from the lands we've come to know. This land has come under the united rule of Emperor Beauregard, a great warrior who rose to power following his conquering of the last of the dragons, as well as his defeat of the Mages of the White Spire. Common people no longer feel the fear of being bewitched, or burned alive by those wicked sorcerers and wizards. He was able to pull off this victory due to his use of Theonite, a magical metal with strange properties. It had the ability to "control magic", and in the right hands, would be very powerful, and very dangerous. Beauregard founded a new order, the Ordinatio Theonitus, sorcerers who bore collars made of this metal. These collars could never be removed. Beauregard was also able to unite the lands religiously. All clerics came to serve Reya, Queen of the Gods, Patron of Summer, Ruler of the Sun and Sky, and Keeper of Law and Order and Justice. Anyone caught speaking of any other gods would spend the rest of their life in a castle dungeon...

The current year is 3122, in the Month of the Queen. Somewhere, in a tall, luxurious mansion, a man stands at a window, brooding out at the stormy night. This is Screech Echo, the wealthy leader of Reverb Mining and Logistics. Tall, dark, and handsome, Screech reminisces on the death of his parents, Blast and Toot Echo, several years ago, at the hands of magic users. He's helped in his reminiscence by his man servant, Milton Graves, who encourages him not to dwell in the past, and look instead toward the present. The mines have been failing, and he needs to proceed, posthaste, to Rimeford. There he'll meet up with Granona Flintbeard, who's overseeing the mine. Screech, however, has an ulterior motive for heading there: to investigate the seedy underbelly of the city. It's a dark world out there. A world that needs... Screech.

Meanwhile, in the capital city of Farhold, a massive building lies in the heart of town. It's cube-like shape, with no windows and only a single door lends it the nickname "The Slab", and it serves as headquarters of the Ordinatio Theonitus. Inside, we meet Selene von Esper, one of the newest additions to the order. Recently out of magic school, Selene is still trying to prove herself, and nervous about her upcoming meeting with Master Caegin. She steels herself, brushing sweat from her brow, before entering his office. Caegin refers to her as "Adept Selene", though whether that's a title or just a descriptor remains to be seen. He tells her that he's sending her to the Whispering Peaks region on her first mission: to investigate the mine in Rimeford that's been under-performing lately in it's supply of Theonite. She'll need to go alone, so she isn't noticed, but she will be in communication with the order, via her collar of Theonite. It allows her to send and receive messages from The Slab, but, Caegin warns, it won't work when she's within a mile of the mines. Something about the proximity to the vast supply of Theonite overloading the collar, or something. So, if she gets into trouble, she'll need to get away from the mines to call for help. He also tells her that she'll be given a small stipend, and will be traveling by caravan. In about a week, it will be Remembrance Day, a holiday celebrating the Emperor's defeat of the White Spire. This is good, because Selene will be able to use the feast as an excuse to get information. If folks around town are "in their cups", and having a good time, their lips will loosen, so to speak. Caegin instructs her to report to Sir Yalos, the local ruler of Rimeford, but to be careful of "the inn proprietor", as they are not what they seem. She's then dismissed.

The next morning, Selene is met by the caravan that will take her to the city. And inside, is Screech Echo! As they travel, the two bond. They're both pretty well endowed, financially speaking, and so they have that in common. And they both have their share of secrets. They stay at an inn the first night, and have to rough it out in tents in the woods the second night. Selene writes in her diary, as Screech assembles a series of ball bearings, counting and analyzing them, like the weirdo he is. But as they do these things, they hear a shuffling outside. Screech attempts to sneak out of his tent, but slips on his ball bearings, and out he tumbles. This sparks a fight between the two of them, and the three goblins that have snuck into their camp! Screech is able to sneak away, seems to run off! Selene, now on her own, blasts one with cold damage, before being struck with an arrow.

Suddenly, another arrow comes flying out of the darkness! The attacker? A dark figure, silhouetted in the moonlight, dressed all in a costume. A costume in the shape of... a flying squirrel! This masked crusader puts down the wounded goblin, and Selene is able to put the other two to sleep. She turns to the mysterious newcomer, and calls him "Screech". But Screech, or whoever he is, tries to deflect, and run off behind a tree. She can see him, though, and follows him to his hiding place. He doesn't admit to who he is, but he does pull the arrow out of her, which is nice. When the rest of the caravan arrive to deal with the goblins, the totally-not-Screech person ducks away, successfully this time. And then Screech appears, asking what he missed! He attempts to convince Selene that he was lying in bed the whole time, and while she's not convinced, she doesn't press him on the issue.

The rest of their trip passes by without incident. Nearly a week later, they arrive at the mountains of the Whispering Peaks. A massive waterfall leads the eye up to the peak of one of these mountains, upon which they see the small village of Rimeford. To get there, they must take a thin and winding path up the side of the hill, no small feat for their caravan. But they do get there, and are met with a gorgeous view. A small town seems to grow out of the edge of a beautiful mountain side lake, beyond which lie forests and peaks. To the west, they see the crumbling white tower that once was a White Spire. It rises above the entrance a great pit, the mine that descends deep into the ground. Hundreds of years ago, a vast supply of Theonite was discovered here, and so a curious mage had this tower built to study it. During the Mage Wars, this tower was one of the greatest assets of the White Spire, due to its proximity to the Theonite supply. However, this also made it a large target, and the tower was one of the first to fall during the conflict. Over the years, a small keep, the village of Rimeford, was assembled, and a knight named Sir Rex Yalos took up residency here. He runs the town, while Granona Flintbeard, from Reverb Mining and Logistics, manages the mine. The mine employs most of the denizens of the town.

But not everyone who lives in Rimeford works for the mine. Hunters are still needed to bring game and supplies back to the village. Two such hunters are out in the forests to the north-east now, T'Chuck, and his adoptive daughter R'Oarc. He teaches her how to hunt and skin squirrels before catching wind of a large bear somewhere nearby. Tasked by Sir Yalos with bringing food back to town to prepare for tomorrow's Remembrance day feast, they decide to track the bear, instead. Upon finding it, R'Oarc attempts to sneak up on the beast. She makes too much noise, however, and it attacks. She is able to make it sleep (using the spell *Sleep*), though, and so they kill it and take it back to town, along with the squirrel, and some mushroom that T'Chuck collects.

As they enter town, they see a caravan roll in...

### Short

We meet a cast of characters: Screech Echo, Selene von Esper, R'Oarc, and T'Chuck. Screech and Selene travel via caravan to the small mining town of Rimeford to investigate the mines there, while R'Oarc and T'Chuck, who live there, hunt for game. They all converge in town...

## **Trivia**

* Day 1 of the campaign.
* Michael begins by saying that the time span between the end of Campaign 1 and this episode is "vague", and doesn't want to specify. But he also says the current year is 3122. The end of Campaign 1 took place around 1717. So, if all of this is true, then it's been about 1,405 years since the end of Campaign 1. But, this is a fantasy world, and time is a flat circle, so who knows what's what.
* This article took around 1000 years to write.

## **In This Episode...**

### **Cast and Player Characters**

* Michael DiMauro - *Dungeon Master*
* Tim Lanning - T'Chuck
* Jennifer Cheek - Selene von Esper
* Nika Howard - R'Oarc
* Mike Bachmann - Screech Echo / Squirrel Man (Screech)

### **Non-Player Characters**

* Milton Graves
* Master Caegin

### **Locations**

* Drunkeros
	+ Echo Manor
	+ Farhold
* Whispering Peaks
	+ Rimeford
		- Rimeford forests

### **Inventory**

 Various Books

### **Quest Log Updates**

* [NEW][Active] - Investigate the Rimeford mines

### **Quotes**

* **"My tent has a large window on the side, so I can brood..."** ~ *Mike Bachmann*

* **"What if you left two empty chairs for your parents? And you still sit in your high chair, like a little freak?!"** ~ *Tim Lanning*

## **Rolls**

* Screech and Selene both roll *Perception* during the second night
	+ **Selene** - Nat 20
		- She can hear 3 or 4 small-footed creatures making their way into camp
	+ **Screech** - 15
		- There's some rustling outside

* **Selene** rolls *Investigation* to see what the creatures are - 9
	+ The shape disappears behind Screech's tent

* Screech and Selene both roll *Stealth* to sneak out of their tents
	+ **Screech** - Nat 1 + 7
		- Fail - He slips and slides out, noisily
	+ **Selene** - Nat 20
		- Success - She sneaks out, silently

*Combat Begins vs 3 Goblins*

* Initiative
	+ Screech - 24
	+ Selene - 21
	+ Goblin 1
	+ Goblin 2
	+ Goblin 3

*Round One*

* **Screech**
	+ Hides in the shadows, with a *Stealth* roll - 22
		- Success - He melts away into the night

* **Selene**
	+ Casts *Ray of Frost* on Goblin 1 - 21
		- Hit - 4 Cold damage, and speed is reduced by 10 until Selene's next turn
	+ Uses a Bonus action to *Telekinetic Shove* one Goblin into another, requiring a DC 13 Strength Saving Throw - 15
		- Success - Not shoved

* **Goblin 1, 2, and 3**
	+ Selene uses a Reaction to cast *Shield*, increasing her AC to 17
	+ Ranged Attack (Shortbow) vs Selene {x3} - 23, 13, 4
		- Hit, Miss, Miss - 5 damage

*Round Two*

* **Screech**
	+ Ranged Attack (Shortbow) vs Goblin 1 - 19
		- Hit (Sneak Attack) - 10 damage

* **Selene**
	+ Runs toward the caravan
	+ Casts *Sleep* on the two remaining Goblins - 26

*Combat Ends*

* **Screech** rolls *Stealth* to duck away after the battle - 9
	+ Vs Selene's *Perception* - 21
		- He runs behind a tree, but she sees him

* **Screech** rolls *Medicine* to fix Selene's arrow wound - 18
	+ Success - He removes the arrow

* **Screech** rolls *Deception* to convince Selene that he was in bed asleep - 9
	+ Fail - She knows he's lying

* T'Chuck and R'Oarc roll *Perception* checks while hunting in the woods - 8
	+ **T'Chuck** - 8
		- There's a squirrel in a far off tree
	+ **R'Oarc** - 4
		- Probably doesn't see it

* **T'Chuck** casts *Toll the Dead* against a squirrel for 1d8 damage - 1 damage
	+ Kills it

* **T'Chuck** rolls *Intimidation* to get R'Oarc to not use magic - 16
	+ She either is or isn't intimidated.

* **T'Chuck** rolls *Survival* to teach R'Oarc how to skin a squirrel - 23
	+ Success - He does so

* **T'Chuck** rolls *Survival* again while hunting (with advantage) - 22
	+ Success - He picks up the tracks of an elk

* **R'Oarc** rolls *Stealth* to sneak up on the bear - Nat 1
	+ Fail - It notices them

*Combat Begins vs Bear*

* Initiative
	+ **R'Oarc** - 18
	+ **T'Chuck** - 4

*Round One*

* **R'Oarc**
	+ Casts *Sleep* on the bear - 28 hp
		- That's enough to make it sleep

*Combat Ends*

* **T'Chuck** rolls *Survival* to collect some mushrooms - 25
	+ He gets some