Having completed their quest to discover the cult’s plans, the adventurous women wander back to small town of Greenest. Governor Cassie is delighted to see they survived and is deeply disturbed to hear they found dragon eggs so close to her town. She pays them what was promised and provides horses for their journey ahead. Leosin the Monk, who hired them to explore the cultist camp, left a note to meet him in Elturel, a holy city several days’ travel north of Greenest.

In the morning, they set out for Elturel via the beautiful Greenfields – rolling grassy hills surrounding Greenest. The weather is beautiful and sunny, just the right temperature for autumn. About midday they cross paths with an elderly dwarf with a short braided beard. She is resting on a rock eating a simple lunch of local mushrooms. Pleasantries are exchanged, and she reveals she is traveling south to visit her granddaughter. When asked about Elturel, she says it is a vast city full of life. Night does not exist there due to a large orb of sunlight in the sky providing constant light. Elturel is a religious city. The locals believe the light will prevent evil and darkness from intruding within their walls. When she finishes her meal, she wishes the group good luck and bids them farewell. The sun sets soon after, and Zelena (elf wizard) creates a magical Tiny Hut for everyone to sleep in, including the horses. Keeping watch overnight, Issa (tiefling druid) only hears a few deer and a couple howling wolves. She also sees a large bright star on the northweast horizon that she’s never noticed before.

The sun rises the next morning, and the group eats a meager breakfast. Continuing North, they come to a wooden bridge over the Chionthar River that connects to the small city of Berdusk. This city is mostly residental. There is a small dock for the river boats. The adventuring women head straight to the stables to give their horses a rest, passing a couple temples on the way. Nimbee (gnome ranger) spots a music shop and quickly ducks inside. She feels nostalgic about her days in bard school and is curious if she retains any of the skills she learned. Looking around, she sees lutes and harps and ukuleles. A halfling man greets her from behind the counter. She asks if they have anything extra special, with magical properties. He winks and says he has just the thing for her. From under the counter he pulls out a set of exquisite handheld pipes. “This will help you in danger. I designed it myself, so I can assure you they sound beautiful, and they will protect you.” Nimbee excitedly pays for these pipes and rejoins the group on the street.

Zelena seeks out the town alchemist, hoping to find some healing potions. After asking around, she is directed toward one old man who keeps to himself. He was once a druid and is not really sure how old he is anymore. He offers the group some fresh tea and a seat in his garden. He grows his own food and has no need for money anymore. In exchange for his potions, instead of coin he asks for stories. The party sits on the ground and sips his fine spearmint tea. Nimbee takes out her pet Snakey. She tells the old man she used to travel alone, but one day these thugs jumped her in a forest. Snakey came out from under a rock and defended her until the thugs ran away. They have been best friends since. For this story, the old man gives her one healing potion since the gift of friendship heals the deepest wounds. Phoebe then recites a story she memorized as a child about how Odin created Valkyrie angels to fight his wars. These warriors decided who lived and who died on the battlefield. To be spared by a Valkyrie meant you were blessed by the gods and were expected to live a moral life thereafter. For this story, the old man gives her a potion of poison so she too could decide who lives and dies. Zelena then reveals a story of lost love. She used to travel with a group of paladins across the swamp lands. One of them she cared deeply for, and he cared deeply for her. However, he was human and therefore has a very short lifespan. She is an elf and will live for centuries. Feeling torn wanting to be with him forever but also selfishly not wanting to watch him age, she left in the night. For this story, the old man gives her a potion of heroism, for what she did was very brave. He only had the three potions available today, but he allows the group to stay with him overnight. They sleep soundly in his garden, perfectly safe.

In the early morning, Vola (Half-orc wizard) awakens to hear something squeaking from within her backpack. She tentatively opens it up, and a very cute black psudodragon climbs out. It jumps into her arms and settles into a cuddle. It is a only two feet long with big round eyes. She feels a wave of peace and happiness as it telepathically communicates its emotions with her. Vola rifles through her backpack with her free arm to see where it came from. Nothing looks amiss except the black plush dragon toy she had rescued from the caves is missing. “Guys, my plush toy came to life! Look!” Vola exclaims, waking everyone else up. The little dragon flits around the sleepy group, spreading cheerful feelings. She names her pseudodragon familiar “Fluffy”. Once everyone is awake, the old druid man feeds the group avocado toast and fresh squeezed orange juice for breakfast. They thank him for his time, hospitality, and precious potions.

After picking up their horses from the stables, they set out once again into the Greenfields to the northwest. There are a few more travelers out this day. They pass a halfling family and a few half-elves heading opposite directions. Some warn of wandering orcs, but Phoebe (human paladin) assures the strangers they can defend themselves in danger. As the sun begins to set, they settle down in an open field and start a campfire to cook the venison they bought from the hunter in the cultist camp. The bright northwest star Issa saw earlier is brighter now and higher in the sky. As they are eating dinner, Issa spots a few figures atop a hill to the east of their camp. She stares intently at the figures and perceives these are green orcs carrying swords. As she points this out to the group, another one appears and gestures toward the campfire. Issa stands up and cries to her friends to run. In a panic everyone gets up and runs in a circle. Zelena stamps out the fire. Phoebe spots a big tree to the north and sprints towards it, yelling to follow her. She gives everyone a boost up into the branches as the orcs rush toward the camp. She jumps up and dangles from a low branch when the orcs reach the tree. They yell in orcish and throw javelins into the foilage. The horses are spooked and run away to the west.

Nimbee pulls out her new pipes, hoping they will prove as helpful as the halfling shopkeeper promised. She plays a beautiful melody, slicing through the tension of the moment. As she finishes her song, the grass below begins to shift and sway, as if a gust of wind is blowing past. The orcs stop yelling and look around at the ground. Bursting from the brush, dozens of rats jump onto the orcs and start gnawing on their extremities. They scream, and one orc jumps into the tree next to Phoebe. He punches Phoebe’s hands, causing her to lose her grip and fall onto the ground into the pile of wild rats. Nimbee says, “That is not what I expected,” and tries to play the pipes again to sooth the rats. This attempt fails, and the rats leap on top of Phoebe. Zelena shoots a spray of acid at the orc in the tree, but he still clings to the tree. Vola pulls Fluffy out of her backpack and asks him to help. Fluffy slinks down the tree to the branch the orc is hanging from and bites his arms. He yells and drops down into the rats. Issa reaches a hand down, and vines descend to grab Phoebe out of the rat pile. Phoebe is lifted back into the tree. “Sorry, Phoebe, I thought I would be able to control them if I played again,” Nimbee says as she puts her Pipes of the Sewers away. Fluffy slinks back up to Vola and hides in her backpack. The rats finish off the orcs at the base of the tree then slowly migrate back into the grassy fields. The adventurous women spend the night safe in the tree, keeping watch for more orcs and rats. The bright northwestern star is high in the sky, and they are now close enough to see it is not a star at all. It is a huge orb of light above the city of Elturel, as the dwarvish women told them a few days earlier.

-This episode was played at a local bar/restaurant that supports board gamers and has multiple rooms that can be reserved. Going out once in a while as a group can really help solidify friendships. We like to say we are a group of friends who happen to play DnD together. Our relationships and well being are more important than the game.

-Asking for stories instead of money encourages role playing and getting into character, which can be hard for a lot of people normally. It rewards creativity.