Episode 373 - Brain Brine Juice

Alright, time to figure out how to get into Earth Smash 42. This plane is already crowded and we seem late but there has got to be a helpful person looking for a favor. This is the Adventuring Hero way!

## **Story**

### Long Story

Dipper takes the party to the White Flounder. Lahni asks the clerk if they any unique rooms for them to stay at. They do not. As it turns out, they only have 1 room, which the party promptly procures. Lahni also asks the clerk if he knows the whereabouts of The Sorrowful Man, but is isn't the clerk that responds. Instead, the conversation is overheard by a nearby Dao named Doug Rubble, who says he has connections with the SM. But, in return for his help, he asks for their help in return. He tells them that he wants their help in acquiring some of the brine that surrounds the Elder Brain that controls the dreaded Mind Flayers. No easy feat, to be sure, but it must be for a good cause right? Oh, to make drugs? Okay, cool.

But first, the party spends the night in the White Flounder's room. They go to sleep on slabs, and the next morning, they wake up on slabs. They're then led down through some worm tunnels, eventually, leading to the entrance of the territory of the Mind Flayers. Toby attempts able to reach out with his intellect/magic/some shit to find the brain, at Bercy's suggestion, but is unable. Rowan sees some tracks leading off in a direction, that most likely belongs to the Mind Flayers. Also, Doug Rubble has the ability to to do something called "Earthgliding", where he can, essentially, phase through stone walls and move through them as if they were non-existent. He suggests he do this to the ceiling, while keeping his arms held down below it, holding one of the party members, and dropping them on top of the Mind Flayers, to surprise them. Lahni supplements this with the idea that SHE be the one to be held, and can run in circles in place, making her into living helicopter blades. A horrifying thought to think about, so I refuse to do so any further.

Ultimately, they decide to sneak in. Lahni, of course, can turn invisible, while Toby stays back and watches through Hoby's eyes, atop Rowan, who, along with Skud, will just be doing stealth rolls. Doug Rubble, will phase through the walls. This all falls to shit, however, when Rowan rolls a Nat 1, and Skud doesn't fare much better. They are met with 4 Mind Flayers, who immediately go on the attack.

Toby creates a metal cage around them, and Lahni runs around the room, kicking rocks at them. Rowan shoots arrow, and Skud sends in the BattleBot into the cage to do some beat downs. He then kills one using a *Chromatic Orb*. All of this is happening over Toby's insistance that they keep at least one of them alive, so that they can question it. After the Mind Flayers use Mind Blasts to stun Lahni, Skud, and Rowan, Toby finally breaks out the spell *Wish* that he's been saving for a rainy day to restore their hit points, and un-stuns them. Now free, Lahni reaches through the cage and slaps one of them to death. With only two remaining Mind Flayers, Rowan is able to zap them both with a Lighting Arrow, and then shoot a standard arrow at one of them, killing it. Only one left, which needs to be left alive. It's up to Skud to take it down. He uses his Longsword of Wounding to slash his Achilles tendon, taking him down, and ending the fight.

### Short

The party enters the White Flounder, where they meet Doug Rubble. Together, the group spends the night in a gross, mothy room, where Doug Rubble tells them he will take them to The Sorrowful Man, if they will first help him acquire the brine from the tank of a Mind Flayer Brain. So, the group heads into the caves to find some Mind Flayers. They do so, attempting to sneak up on them, but end up falling into the room, and a fight ensues. Three of the four Mind Flayers are killed, and Skud ends the fight by slashing both the Achilles tendons on the final one, subduing it.

## **Trivia**

* Earthstomp 42 is in two days, and the tickets are all sold out
* Everyone has Darkvision except for Skud
* Here is the image of the sexy Mind Flayer that everyone was talking about

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

### **Cast and Player Characters**

* Michael DiMauro - *Dungeon Master*
* Tim Lanning - Toby Treacletart / Hoby
* Jennifer Cheek - Rowan Grey
* Mike Bachmann - Skud Derringer
* Nika Howard - Lahnik "Lahni" Caplain
* Pat Edwards - Doug Rubble

### **Non-Player Characters**

* Dipper
* Bercy Hamhands

### **Locations**

* The Elemental Plane of Earth
	+ Jörldin

### **Quest Log Updates**

* [On-Hold] - Stop Tiamat!
* [Active] - Destroy The Orb!
	+ [Active] - Find the first missing piece
		- [Active] - Gain access to the Elite Forge
			* [On Hold] - Defeat Lucious Incendous, Master of the Fire Plane
			* [On Hold] - Defeat Fuckin Gary, Master of the Air Plane
			* [Active] - Defeat The Man of Sorrow, Master of the Earth Plane
				+ [NEW][Active] - Collect the Brain Brine from the Elder Brain
	+ [On-Hold] - Find the third missing piece
		- [On-Hold] - Investigate the final location
* [On-Hold] - Find Adira Harper
* [Backburner] - Find Lannie Caplain
	+ [On-Hold] - Investigate Galanthis
* [Active] - Find a way to pay back the Ferrim Pecunia bank of Pelor's Hope
* [Active][Jaeludra] - Investigate the Great Colosseum in Caer

## **Rolls**

* **Recap**
	+ Jennifer - 17
	+ **Nika - 19**
	+ Bachmann - 8
	+ Pat - 14
	+ Tim - 12

* **Toby** rolls *Arcana* to see what he knows about this Dao situation
	+ 17
		- Success - He knows that Dao are very literal

* **Toby** rolls *Knowledge* to see if he can feel where the brain is
	+ 25
		- He cannot

* **Rowan** rolls *Survival* to attempt to track the brain
	+ 20
		- She can sense that Mind Flayers have been through here, and can follow the tracks that they went to

* **Everyone** rolls *Perception* while in the caves
	+ Skud - 24
	+ Lahni - 20
	+ No one else rolls, because they get distracted by Rowan's roll, but Skud is able to hear some squid-like noises up ahead

* **Rowan** and **Skud** rolls *Stealth* checks to sneak into the Mind Flayers base
	+ Rowan - Nat1!!!
	+ Skud - 8
		- They just fall in, Kramer-style

*Combat Begins vs 4 Mind Flayers*

* *Initiative*
	+ Toby - Nat20
	+ Lahni - 22
	+ Rowan - 19
	+ Skud - 15
	+ Doug Rubble - 10
	+ Mind Flayer 1
	+ Mind Flayer 2
	+ Mind Flayer 3
	+ Mind Flayer 4

*Round One*

* **Toby** casts *Silent Image* to make metal spiky bars surrounding them (and Lahni), to trap them

* *Lahni* phases through the bars and kicks up tiny little rocks that hit them in their stupid, Mind Flayer head
	+ Nat20, 29, 18, 30
		- Hit, Hit, Hit, Hit - 20+18+8+16 damage

* **Rowan** casts *Hail of Thorns* and shoots 2 arrows
	+ Nat1, 20
		- Miss, Hit - 37 damage to the main one, also, they all need to make a DEX saving throw
			* 7 - 2 Fail, one succeeds
				+ The two that fail take 10 damage

* **Skud** puts the BattleBot in the cage with them, then casts *Chromatic Orb* on the one that's very injured
	+ 20
		- Hit - 20 damage - *Kills It!*
	+ The BattleBot swings at one of the others
		- 22
			* Hit - 22 damage

* **Doug Rubble** conjures an Earth Elemental, which "Slams" them twice (that's a form of attack, not a sex thing)
	+ 28, 19
		- Hit, Hit - 27 total damage

* **Mind Flayer 1** does a Mind Blast on Skud and Lahni, requiring Intelligence saving throws
	+ Lahni - [Nat1], uses Ki point to reroll, Nat20
		- Success
	+ Skud - 19
		- Success

* **Mind Flayer 2** does a Mind Blast on Skud and Lahni, requiring Intelligence saving throws
	+ Lahni - 15
		- 22 psychic damage, and stunned for 1 minute
	+ Skud - 7
		- 22 psychic damage, and stunned for 1 minute

* **Mind Flayer 3** does a Mind Blast on Rowan, requiring an Intelligence saving throw
	+ Rowan - 7
		- 22 psychic damage, and stunned for 1 minute

*Round Two*

* **Toby** finally casts *Wish*, restoring his friends' hit points, and removing all negative conditions (I.e. Stunned)

* **Lahni** reaches through the bars and slaps the most weakened Mind Flayer
	+ 27
		- Hit - 18 damage - *Kills It!*

* + **Rowan** casts *Lightning Arrow* and strikes at one
	+ 19
		- Hit, and requires a DEX saving throw - 5
			* Fails - 21 damage to the first one, 17 to the other
	+ Then just does a standard ranged attack
		- 28
			* Hit - 20 damage to it - *Kills It!*

* **Skud** uses the BattleBot to hit the last one non-lethally
	+ 23
		- Hit - 23 damage
	+ He then runs up and hits him with his Longsword of Wounding in his Achilles tendon
		- 21
			* Hit - 9 damage - *"Kills It!"*

*Combat Ends*