Episode 1 - So It Begins!

Greetings Adventurers!

## The Characters

* On Tum Darkblade: "Everyone calls [him] Darkblade. He is a halfling rogue. He likes to jump around and stab people from shadows. He is a rough-and-tumble little guy."
* On Aludra the Dwarf: "She does not have a last name right now. She's a female dwarf druid. She can summon a giant frog, which is the thing I'm most excited about, and turn into animals. Or one animal... whatever she wants, but she's only one person... she can't be a pack of wolves, but she can be a wolf. Or a bear. Or a frog!"
* On Junpei Iori: "My character is a good male githyanki wizard Sha'ir, which is, I think, some kind of elemental, burny-type thing which I picked because there's a character that's kinda like that in Planescape: Torment which is a game I played once, and his name is Junpei Iori, and I think that his species is, like, a... astral space pirates or something... goblins... space pirate goblins... they pirate astral space."
* On Thom the Dragonborn: "I am a dragonborn warlord named Thom who can breathe lightning, and that's really all I know about him... It's spelled T-H-O-M but the 'H' is silent... he gets really mad if you call him 'Thom'."

## **Story**

### Long Story

The adventure begins in a small, dimly lit room. The room is about thirty by thirty-five feet and is lit by a single torch on each wall. On the northern wall is the room's only door, which is closed. Along the western wall is a long table bearing a variety of strange and sinister medical equipment. The only sound that can be heard is a soft moaning.

It is in this room that **Junpei Iori**, **Thom the Dragonborn**, and **Tum Darkblade** awaken. They immediately realize that they are lying on several stone slabs that are lined up against the eastern wall of the room. To make matters worse, their arms and legs are bound to the slabs. Tum tries and fails to escape his bonds, so he looks around the room. His eyes land on the occupants of the other two slabs--a gravely injured man, and the still unconscious **Aludra the Dwarf**. The man is the source of the moaning, and for good reason; nearly half his head is wrapped in bandages that are covering what appear to be freshly mended wounds. Thom is about to yell for the man's attention when the door swings open, and the injured man gasps.

A small and unfamiliar man walks through the door. He is wearing a butcher's apron that is covered in bloodstains both new and old. As the trio watches, he walks over to the table and picks up a rusty saw. He then walks to the man on the slab, who is now screaming, and begins to saw off the man's right hand. It doesn't take long for the man to pass out, and soon his hand has been completely sawn off. The small man drops the hand in a tray and ties a tourniquet around the now-bloody stump. He then puts the tray and saw back on the table and leaves the room, closing the door but leaving it unlocked.

As Aludra begins to awaken, Thom breathes lightning at the ropes binding him. He manages to release his left hand, and within moments he is free. Junpei, realizing that Thom has escaped the ropes, asks *"Hey, lightning man, can you help me out?"* Thom replies *"Yeah don't worry bro, I'll help you out."* Soon, everyone--with the exception of the unconscious man--is standing in the middle of the room. Junpei and Aludra turn their attention to the man while Tum and Thom examine the contents of the table. Junpei tries to wake up the man by slapping him with his Mage Hand while Aludra studies the man's wounds. He seems to be in decent enough shape, so Junpei covers the man's mouth (again, using his Mage Hand) and Aludra wakes him up. The man immediately begins screaming. Startled, Junpei removes the Mage Hand, but quickly replaces it when the man continues to scream. Aludra pats the man's head and tries to calm him down, but he passes out yet again.

The group decides that they can't stay in this room any longer. Aludra listens at the door to make sure the coast is clear. She doesn't hear anything, but notices several sharp tools that they could use as weapons. Thom unties the man on the slab, and the group outfits themselves with the best knives they can find. Aludra checks on the man one last time, then Thom boldly opens the door and strides through.

He finds himself in the middle of a hallway. On the western end is a set of stairs leading upwards. To the east are two doors--one at the very end of the hall, another set in the same wall as the door they've just exited through. Junpei and Tum scout out the door at the eastern end, but before they can get too close Aludra stops them. She hears what none of the others can--voices coming from the east. Tum, thinking quickly, scouts ahead to the west. He finds that the stairs lead up to a large room with several doors, a large table in the middle, and six statues lined up against one wall. As he is doing this, Aludra looks down and notices a trail of fresh blood, headed east. This, paired with the voices, are more than enough for the group to decide to head west.

As the group creeps along the hallway, Junpei senses that the air around them is tingling with dark, creepy, spooky magic. The group is very frightened as they climb the stairs--including Tum, even though he manages to hide it from the others. The group enters the room, and as they do so the statues begin to move. Junpei has just enough time to realize that these are animated skeletons before the creatures attack.

The battle is violent but quick. Most of the skeletons are armed with swords, but the two in the back spend most of the battle shooting at the group with bows and arrows. At one point, Junpei uses his Mage Hand to give Tum a sword, then moves him across the room to stand in front of one of the skeletons. Thom, seeing the situation unfold, gives Tum a word of encouragement: *"Hey. Hey Tum. I really believe in you and I think that you've got what it takes to take this monster down. So...get him, buddy."* It is a powerful moment of trust, cooperation, and teamwork in the face of danger.

Unfortunately, Tum foregoes the plan entirely. He ignores the longsword in his hand and instead throws a dagger at the skeleton. He misses, and the skeleton takes the opportunity to shoot Tum with an arrow. Thom heals Tum, and the battle continues. Junpei takes out the second-to-last skeleton with a Nightmare Eruption, and Tum makes up for his earlier blunder by slaying the final skeleton with a well-placed Dazing Strike.

After the battle, the group takes a moment to recover. They stand around the table in the center of the room, and the episode ends as they look at what lays on it.

### Short

Four heroes wake up on slabs. They investigate the area around them, including an unconscious man. After a few minutes, a strange man enters and cuts off the hand of the unconscious man, who wakes up but passes out again. After the surgeon leaves, Thom frees himself from his bonds, and then the others. Together, they escape the room and enter another full of animated skeletons, which they fight and destroy.

## **Trivia**

* First Appearance of Tum Darkblade!
* First Appearance of Thom the Dragonborn!
* First Appearance of Aludra the Dwarf!
* First Appearance of Junpei Iori!
* First Appearance of Shadowspar Keep
* First use of the phrase "Call me Darkblade"
* First time Thom attempts to take a body part (severed hand)
* First use of *Mage Hand*
* First *Sly Flourish!*
* First Combat

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

### **Cast and Player Characters**

* Michael DiMauro - *Dungeon Master*
* Tim Lanning - Tum Darkblade
* Jennifer Cheek - Aludra the Dwarf
* Mike Bachmann - Thom the Dragonborn
* Steven Strom - Junpei Iori

### **Non-Player Characters**

* Man on a Slab
* Evil Surgeon

### **Inventory Updates**

* +1 Tum Darkblade to the party
* +1 Thom the Dragonborn to the party
* +1 Aludra the Dwarf to the party
* +1 Junpei Iori to the party

### **Quest Log Updates**

* [New][Active] - Find out who the players are
* [New][Active] - Escape the mysterious castle

### **Quotes**

* *"Okay guys, I don't understand how D&D works." (Michael DiMauro)*
* *"Thom is the mildest dragonborn you will ever meet." (Jennifer Cheek)*
* *"Go ahead. Go. Make Dungeons and Dragons happen." (Michael DiMauro)*
* *"Call me Darkblade." (Tum Darkblade)*
* *I think my bosom is great at healing." (Aludra)*

## **Rolls**

* **Tum** rolls *Thievery* to escape his bonds - 10+12
	+ He is unable to escape the bonds

* **Thom** rolls to breath lighting on his bonds - 10
	+ Success - his left hand is now free

* **Aludra** rolls *Healing* to wake up the sleeping guy - 11+10
* Success - He wakes up

* **Aludra** rolls *Perception* to listen at the door - Natural 20+10
	+ She hears nothing out the door, and notices some weapons

* **Aludra** rolls *Perception* to see where Tum's knives go - 4+10
	+ She doesn't see

* **Aludra** rolls *Perception* to look down the hall - 11+10
	+ She hears voices off in the distance to the east

* **Tum** rolls *Stealth* to sneak down the hallway - 27
	+ He does

* **Aludra** makes another perception check - 6+10
	+ She notices a fresh trail of blood that heads east

* **Tum** *Bluffs* to make everyone think he isn't scared - 15+8

* **Aludra** rolls *Perception* to see if the figures are statues or alive - 11+10
	+ They are foes

*Combat Begins vs skeleton creatures*

* **Initiative**
	+ Tum - 21
	+ Skeletons (AC 16, REF 14) - 17
	+ Junpei - 11+1
	+ Thom - 5
	+ Aludra - 1

*Round One*

* **Tum**
	+ Melee Attack (dagger) vs skeleton (Sly Flourish) - 13
		- Hit - *kills him (minion)*

* **Skeleton 1**
	+ Melee Attack (longsword)
		- Hit - 4 damage

* **Skeleton 2**
	+ Ranged Attack vs Thom
		- Misses

* **Skeleton 3**
	+ Ranged Attack vs Aludra
		- Hit - 10 damage

* **Junpei**
	+ Attacks with Nightmare Eruption
		- Hit - 8 damage
	+ Does a *Religion* check
		- He notices that the two ranged attackers in the back are much stronger, probably aren't minions

* **Thom**
	+ Uses *Commander Strike* on Tum
		- **Tum**
			* Melee Attack vs Skeleton - 16 vs AC
				+ Hit - *kills him*
	+ Uses *Dragon Breath* against two skeletons - 19, 16
		- Hit, Hit - Kills both of them

* **Aludra**
	+ Uses *Chill Wind* against a skeleton - 13+5 vs FOR
		- Hit - 6 damage, he slides forward one square

*Round Two*

* **Tum**
	+ Ranged Attack (dagger) vs skeleton (Sly Flourish) - 26
		- Hit - 10 damage

* **Skeleton**
	+ Ranged Attack vs Tum
		- Miss

* **Skeleton**
	+ Ranged Attack vs Junpei
		- Miss

* **Junpei**
	+ Grabs the sword with his *Mage Hand*, gives it to Tum
	+ Uses *Nightmare Eruption* against a skeleton - 2+4
		- Fail

* **Thom**
	+ Uses *Commander Strike* on Tum again
		- **Tum**
			* Ranged Attack (dagger) vs skeleton - 14 vs AC
				+ Miss, prompts an opportunity attack
					- **Skeleton**
						* Ranged Attack vs Tum (-2)
							+ Hit - 8 damage
								- Uses *Second Chance*, forcing a re-roll - 19
									* Hit - 8 damage
	+ Uses *Inspiring Word* on Tum, to use a healing surge - 5

* **Aludra**
	+ Uses *Cull the Herd* vs skeleton - 3+8 vs WILL
		- Fails

*Round Three*

* **Tum**
	+ Uses *Piercing Strike* against a skeleton - 13 vs REFLEX
		- Miss

* **Skeleton**
	+ Melee Attack (shortsword) vs Tum
		- Miss

* **Skeleton**
	+ Ranged Attack
		- Miss

* **Junpei**
	+ Uses *Nightmare Eruption* vs Skeleton
		- Hits - *kills it*

* **Thom**
	+ Makes an *Intimidation* check to scare the skeleton - 12+10
		- He is unaffected
	+ Uses *Commander Strike* on Tum again
		- **Tum**
			* Ranged Attack (dagger) vs skeleton - 15 vs AC
				+ Miss

* **Aludra**
	+ Uses *Swarming Locusts* against Zombie - 14 vs REFLEX
		- Hits - 7+5 damage

*Round Four*

* **Tum**
	+ Does a quick *Perception* check - 16-1
		- He notices one of his daggers is close by, so he goes there, picks it up
	+ Ranged Attack (dagger) vs skeleton (Sly Flourish) - 12+2
		- Miss

* **Skeleton**
	+ Ranged Attack vs Tum
		- Hit - 7 damage

* **Junpei**
	+ *Ray of Enfeeblement* vs Skeleton - Nat20+4
		- Hit - 14 damage

* **Thom**
	+ *Demonic Frenzy* vs Skeleton
		- Hit - 2 damage
	+ Melee Attack - 5+5 vs AC
		- Miss

* **Aludra**
	+ *Chill Wind* - 14 vs Fortitude
		- Hit - 2 damage
		- Moves him into position to be flanked

*Round Five*

* **Tum**
	+ *Dazing Strike* - 18+2 vs AC
		- Hit - 2+5 damage
			* Sneak Attack - 6+6 damage - *Kills him*