Our adventuring party arrives at the Baldur’s Gate docks around noon. Baldur’s Gate is a major city along the Trade Way. The streets are narrow, and therefore the gates are narrow. No wagons, pack animals, or large pets are allowed inside the city walls in order to prevent traffic jams. Merchandise must be carried or wheeled in on small, man-powered utility carts. A huge population of traders and guards resides outside the walls in the surrounding fields near each of the city gates. 

Nimby (gnome ranger) has spent some time in this city before and directs the group to a tavern called The Laughing Dog. It is a smaller bar with half a dozen tables. The group sits at a booth and orders a round of ale and noodles for lunch. Other patrons come and go. One tall, golden male dragonborn with broad shoulders enters the room and then gasps at the group. The scales on his skin are polished and reflect the light of the candles inside the tavern. He speaks toward the group, “Nimby, is it really you? I thought my eyes would never see your beauty again.” He rushes over and leans down to clasp her hands. “My darling, tell me that your family is well and that is why you have returned here?” 

Nimby and the group are greatly surprised at this expression of intimacy. Nimby stutters back at him, “Oh, right, I am sorry I had to leave in such a hurry last time.” She looks at her friends dismayed and then turns back to him. “How have you been? How long has it been?” 

“Almost one year. I’ve been counting the days.” He pulls a chair up and joins the table. “I’ve been building a house for us to live in once we are married.” Then he pauses and looks down at her hand. “Do you still have your ring?” 

The group then all stares at Nimby shocked. She replies timidly, “Oh, dear, you know. It is actually a funny story. I had to sell it to pay for medication for my grandmother, who was very sick. She is all better now, and I am back here because I missed you so much.” She pats his cheek. 

He stands up again and bows to the table. “Then come with me, and I will show you the house I’ve built for us.” He reaches out for her hand. 

Nimby takes it and stands as well. She says, “Yes, let’s all go together to see this house.” She looks back at the table and mouths the words, “Help me!” Everyone stands and follows him out the door. Nimby slips her hand out of his and whispers to her friends, “I forgot he was here! Last time I was here we dated for a bit. He proposed after a month, but I sold the ring to pay off some casino debts and then skipped town because I thought he’d be mad!” 

He leads down the street to a small two-room cottage with limited decorations. “Welcome home, Nimby,” he says with pride, stroking the door frame. “I built this place myself. What do you think?” Inside the house is a small kitchen open to a small living room with two chairs and a fireplace. The bedroom has one big bed and a small wardrobe.

Nimby looks around, sighs, and puts her hand on his thigh. “Look, you’re a nice guy. I’m sure there are plenty of cute, available female dragonborn in this city. Why did you wait for me?” 

He sighs too and kneels down to be eye level with her. “Nimby, I know you lied. I know you stole from me. I was angry at first, but you were also an inspiration to me. I got myself out of that dumpy apartment and built something I can be proud of. You might not have been ready to settle down, but you helped me realize that I was. I will always be grateful, and you are always welcome in my home.” She tears up and moves to take his face in her hands, but he backs away and stands up again. He asks in a surprisingly firm voice, “Why are you really back in town?” 

Nimby sniffles and wipes her eyes and looks down at her feet. “I’m sorry I left you that way last year. My friends and I are heading north and joining a caravan.”

He nods and smiles again. “It has been truly good to see you, but it seems now is not the right time to chat.” He walks over to his door. “Let me know when you are in town again so we can catch up properly. Until then, stay safe out there.” 

Nimby hugs him tightly and whispers, “I will.” The group files out of his house, and he shuts the door behind them. 

Once outside, everyone just stares at her with gaping jaws. Nimby shrugs. “Honestly, I don’t even remember his name. Shall we go shopping?” Nimby struts away down an ally toward the north city gate. She yells behind her, “I know a place that sells bombs!” The other women just shake their heads befuddled by what just happened, but still follow after her through the crowded gate.

Badger’s Demolitions is owned by a Bugbear named Badger and is operated by a few halflings and a goblin. Bugbears are medium sized hairy creatures. They are incredibly strong but quiet and stealthy in the wilds. However, this bugbear is boisterous and fully acclimated to city life. Badger is well groomed but works hard in his shop. He smells like a mixture of lavender and gunpowder. He acquired this land outside the city walls to experiment on his explosive ideas. The shop sells bombs of all kinds, and Badger loves to take specific requests. Behind the shop is a huge field for testing new designs. They sell glue bombs, fire bombs, glitter bombs, and force bombs, among many others. The party excitedly asks him which is his favorite, and he directs them to a shelf of bath bombs that will get you instantly clean, skipping the bathing step of baths. These warrior women purchase a dozen bath bombs before heading back into the city. 

Zelena (elf wizard) asks around for a “dragon expert” and is directed towards the home of a retired druid. He is an ancient dragonborn who lives alone. Rumors vary through town about the old man. Some say he was part of a scandal many years ago and was exiled from his druidic village, but others claim he used to live with dragons who taught him druidic magics. 

As they approach the house, they first notice the overflow of vines and flowers covering a small fence in front of the house and draping over the walls enclosing the backyard. The house itself is painted white. A yellow cat sleeps in the sun on the brick steps leading to the front door. Zelena knocks on the door first. After a moment she calls out, “Hello, is anyone home? We are seeking a dragon expert.” 

The cat yawns, stretches, and stands up on its back legs to transform into an aged golden-scaled man holding a staff. “Yes, I am Charlie, some call me Jayjay. I know a thing or two about dragons, so please do come on in. Welcome to my home. I do not get many visitors.” His voice is soft but musical like a bird. His eyes are slightly sunken into his head but are kind and accepting of this misfit group. 

The inside of the house is just as full of plants as the outside was. Plants are in pots on the ground and hanging in baskets. In one corner is a tree growing out from the ground through the floor. There are stairs to an upper floor with vines along the railing. They hear many birds singing upstairs. The living room contains wooden chairs and couches cut out of shrubs and is therefore a “living” room. At the back of the house are sliding doors that open to an amazing garden. Roses, chrysanthemums, and lilies of all colors populate the area. The ground is covered in soft moss. There is a small pond in the center with a turtle with a cracked shell sitting on a rock in the sun. The pond is lined with aloe plants. All types of ferns line the walls surrounding his private garden. He leads the group onto the moss by the pond.

A few wooden chairs walk from inside his house to form a circle, seemingly moving on their own. He sits on one and asks for their names. The women sit on the animated chairs and introduce themselves one by one. 

Then he begins, “I was once part of an adventuring party, as it appears you all are. That was centuries ago, but those were good times. What brings you to the Dragon Expert of Balder’s Gate today?” 

Phoebe (human paladin) compliments his garden and explains they are tasked with following the Cult of the Dragon, but they lack information. 

Charlie nods and waves a hand in the air. In the center of the chair circle appears a translucent blue dragon three feet long. “Blue dragons have lightning breath.” The dragon opens its mouth, and a bolt of lightning shoots out toward Nimby. She yells and jumps off the chair, but it is only an illusion. “They live in deserts or sandy areas.” The ground below shifts from moss to dunes and the dragon buries itself. 

The sand changes color and becomes white as snow. “White dragons live on icy mountaintops or far to the north on glaciers.” From above a white dragon soars down and lands on the snow. A tiny hare pops its head up from the snow and hops around toward a patch of grass. The dragon opens its mouth and breathes a cone of ice that freezes the rabbit and the entire surrounding area. “White dragons have ice breath and like to keep their frozen prizes on display in their grotesque lairs.” The dragon picks up the frozen bunny and swallows it whole. 

From the tip of its nose toward the tip of its tail, the scales on this illusory dragon flip over to become black, dark as night. The snowy landscape melts into water, then shrubs and cypress trees grow up to populate the marsh. “Black dragons live in acidic swampy areas. They breathe acid, which eats everything for miles around their lairs.” Many skeletons float up to the surface of the water as the dragon sinks below like an alligator. 

The steam off the swamp water grows in intensity until the whole area is covered in thick smoke. It clears to reveal red molten lava. A red dragon emerges from the pool and opens its mouth to shoot a cone of fire in Issa’s (tiefling druid) direction. She doesn’t flinch. “Red dragons have fire breath and are immune to all fire damage. Because of this, they make their homes atop volcanoes or in deep lava tunnels.” 

The smoke rises up again to obscure the view. Then it descends to sit low as fog in a heavy forest. A deer runs past. It pauses suddenly, pulling on a hoof stuck in vines. From the canopy appears a green dragon, hiding in the leaves. “Green dragons are sneaky. They live in forests and jungles.” The dragon then opens its mouth and spits out a waterfall of green poison on top of the deer. The deer’s eyes turn red, and it falls down, convulsing. “They speak and breathe poison. Don’t believe anything they say.” Then the vines shift to release the deer’s hoof, and the dragon drags the deer up into the treetop. 

The forest drops to the ground and vanishes to reveal the mossy garden once more. The group breathes a collective sigh, not realizing they had been holding their breath since the first illusory dragon appeared. Charlie continues, “These five are the chromatic dragon types. Blue, white, black, red, and green. They are evil and live to be centuries old. Everything they do is selfish. It is in their nature. However, there are many other dragon types. Some are good, such as the gold, bronze, silver, copper, and platinum metallic dragons. These reside along the coast or on other planes of existence. I used to be an ambassador to their council in the Nether mountains. These metallic types live for millennia and forget how to interact with us lower humanoid species. I spent many years attempting to keep the peace between them and the nearby cities. All dragons are very proud and easily offended. You must be very careful around any type, as they are all deadly.”

Phoebe has a concerned look on her face. “Are the chromatic dragons really evil at birth? Even if they were raised good?” 

“Ah, now that is a question. Such a thing has never been attempted. Most dragon eggs are guarded closely and do not leave sight of the mother.”

Zelena sheepishly pulls out her bag of holding. “Well, it just so happens that we have three eggs with us.” She opens the bag, and the group is immediately met by a horrible smell of sulfur. “Oh no…” She quickly pulls out the three eggs they obtained in the hatchery outside Greenest a couple weeks ago. The first of the eggs oozes blue all over the mossy ground. The second has a large crack in its smoky-black shell, and feels hollow and dry. The third, however, is still intact. Charlie rushes to it and puts his ear to the scaley black shell. He closes his eyes and listens. A minute passes. The women sit on the edge of their seats, waiting for a diagnosis…

(To be Continued… in Episode 15b)

-During this episode, we had a guest character. Instead of letting him make a character, I simply told him, “You are Nimby’s ex fiance.” And they made up the rest about the house and how she ran off… None of us now can remember the character’s name.

-this episode was edited by Nimby and Zelena