Latest / Tale of The Manticore, a Dark Fantasy Dungeons & Dragons Audiodrama / Dice Chain: Links 7-8

Transcript

Dice Chain: Links 7-8 · Tale of The Manticore, a Dark Fantasy Dungeons & Dragons Audiodrama

0:03
Speaker 1: Welcome back to Dice Chain, a system fluid, multi-author, experimental
0:08
Speaker 1: fiction series. Before we get into this episode, let's briefly
0:12
Speaker 1: recap the last one. Link 4. BXD & D The
0:22
Speaker 1: mystery person, just introduced at the end of the last episode,
0:25
Speaker 1: is revealed to be Aristan's sister, Alice, who Aristan thought
0:30
Speaker 1: had died. Alice has keys and frees her brothers She
0:33
Speaker 1: leads him into the next room, where he acquires sword
0:36
Speaker 1: and armor. Alice wants to head to the stables and
0:39
Speaker 1: escape through the main gates, saying she has allies in
0:42
Speaker 1: the woods, but Ariston won't leave his squire, Ivar, behind.
0:47
Speaker 1: Now in armor, Ariston looks like one of the guards,
0:50
Speaker 1: so when the two slip into the courtyard and make
0:52
Speaker 1: for Gant Manor's north tower, no one pays them any heed.
0:57
Speaker 1: Link 5. Chasing Adventure Aristan searches Gant Manor for Ivar,
1:03
Speaker 1: who is currently being interrogated by an individual named Dr. Pooley,
1:07
Speaker 1: and confesses that he contributed to Aristan's madness by drugging
1:11
Speaker 1: the night's water. He also admits that Queen Rhiannon is
1:14
Speaker 1: a devil worshipper. Aristan arrives at the door in time
1:17
Speaker 1: to hear these confessions, and is appropriately bewildered. When he
1:21
Speaker 1: confronts the doctor and orders him to release Ivar, Pooley
1:25
Speaker 1: does so, calmly, all the while claiming to be on
1:28
Speaker 1: Aristan's side. By now, The guards have discovered the knight's escape,
1:32
Speaker 1: and there are sounds of commotion from the floor below
1:34
Speaker 1: as they search for him. There's no time to waste,
1:37
Speaker 1: but Aristan is indecisive. Alice, however, is not. She shoots
1:42
Speaker 1: Ivar with her crossbow to force her brother's hand, and
1:45
Speaker 1: then the siblings flee. Bursting into the courtyard with the
1:49
Speaker 1: guards at their heels and their hearts pounding, Aristan suddenly
1:52
Speaker 1: collapses to the ground. When he opens his mouth, a
1:55
Speaker 1: flood of arachnids pours from it. The guards, paralyzed with horror,
2:00
Speaker 1: cannot prevent Alice from escaping over the wall. This is
2:03
Speaker 1: when Pooley appears and drives the arachnids away with a
2:06
Speaker 1: smoking sensor. The doctor says that the phenomenon indicates that
2:10
Speaker 1: Rhiannon took measures in case her spell was ever broken.
2:15
Speaker 1: Link 6. Old School Essentials Two weeks pass before Ariston
2:20
Speaker 1: opens his eyes and finds himself in Dr. Pooley's care.
2:24
Speaker 1: He is surrounded by all manner of strange fumes and vapors,
2:28
Speaker 1: and his thoughts are foggy. Pooley explains that Ivar betrayed him,
2:32
Speaker 1: and Queen Rhiannon bewitched him. Ariston then falls back unconscious
2:36
Speaker 1: for several more days. When he wakes up, he is
2:39
Speaker 1: no longer in Dr. Pooley's workroom, but a bedroom in
2:42
Speaker 1: the South Tower, and he is no longer a prisoner.
2:46
Speaker 1: Ariston tries to make sense of everything. Which memories are real,
2:50
Speaker 1: and which are fantasies implanted by the Queen? Did he
2:53
Speaker 1: really meet his sister? And if so, whose side was
2:56
Speaker 1: she on? Link 6 ends with Ariston attending a meeting
3:00
Speaker 1: with Buckvine and Pooley. Buckvine is prickly, but all the
3:04
Speaker 1: same allows Ariston to join them in planning an assault
3:07
Speaker 1: on Rhiannon's forces.
3:12
Speaker 2: Seventh Link Ah, another link in the binding chain of
3:18
Speaker 2: our narrative. How marvellous. A link once welded is not
3:23
Speaker 2: so easily broken, and the truths established in our past
3:28
Speaker 2: dictate much of our present and our future. Yet still,
3:33
Speaker 2: all is not yet written. Okay, a few words before
3:37
Speaker 2: we jump back into the narrative. For this go-around, I'll
3:41
Speaker 2: use the Iron Sworn RPG, a fantastic game system for
3:44
Speaker 2: solo co-op or small group play. Check it out at ironswornrpg.com,
3:49
Speaker 2: where you can get the base PDF for free. I've
3:52
Speaker 2: converted Aristan to an Ironsworn character. You can see the
3:55
Speaker 2: show notes for his complete character sheet. But as Ironsworn
3:59
Speaker 2: is so simple, you'll get most of it here anyway.
4:02
Speaker 2: His stats are Iron 2, Edge 2, Wits 1, Shadow 1,
4:08
Speaker 2: Heart 3. And for his assets, I chose Ironclad, Swordmaster,
4:15
Speaker 2: and Commander to reflect his significant knightly training and his
4:19
Speaker 2: past military command experience. I'll say his statuses are health,
4:24
Speaker 2: 5 out of 5, spirit, 2 out of 5. He
4:27
Speaker 2: still hasn't gotten over Ivar's death, and the duplicity of
4:31
Speaker 2: the queen he served so loyally has shaken him. Momentum,
4:35
Speaker 2: 2 out of 5, and supply, 4 out of 5.
4:39
Speaker 2: I'll say his current in-progress vow is to assist Buckvine
4:43
Speaker 2: and Poole in attacking the Witch Queen's forces. This is
4:47
Speaker 2: a troublesome vow. That means any milestone towards gathering allies, planning...
4:52
Speaker 2: Attacking her forces count as three progress boxes each. Also
4:58
Speaker 2: of note, when I need inspiration, I will use the
5:00
Speaker 2: tools on the play screen at RPGSolo.com. I've been using
5:03
Speaker 2: this site since 2018 to play and record some of
5:06
Speaker 2: my solo games. And while the user interface is a
5:09
Speaker 2: little dated, it's a fantastic resource and contains much of
5:12
Speaker 2: what I need for solo play. However, this does mean
5:16
Speaker 2: that you won't hear the rattle of any dice since
5:19
Speaker 2: I'm just clicking a button.
5:21
Speaker 1: Alas.
5:22
Speaker 2: And I tried to remove those click sounds anyway. Anyway,
5:26
Speaker 2: on with the narrative. It had been four days since
5:32
Speaker 2: his conversation with the Reverend Dr. Pooley and Wallace Buckvine
5:36
Speaker 2: in the Solarium where they had discussed their planned attack
5:39
Speaker 2: on Queen Rhea. On the Witch Queen, he amended with
5:43
Speaker 2: a shake of his head. He still remembered her alabaster skin,
5:47
Speaker 2: her smile, her lush midnight black hair, her eyes liquid
5:51
Speaker 2: pools of light and laughter, and that clinging emerald dress
5:55
Speaker 2: embroidered with gold threadwork. Aristan sighed and shifted in his saddle.
6:02
Speaker 2: She still held a spell over him of sorts. One
6:05
Speaker 2: more of biology than true magic, he suspected. He grunted
6:10
Speaker 2: and felt elated to be out and about doing something else.
6:14
Speaker 2: He hoped it'd clear his head. He had wanted to
6:16
Speaker 2: go after his sister, but Buckvine had put him to
6:18
Speaker 2: work bringing in groups of new recruits. The passage of
6:22
Speaker 2: more than three weeks during Aristan's convalescence had deepened the
6:26
Speaker 2: autumnal chill noticeably. He pulled his heavy wool cloak closer
6:31
Speaker 2: about his shoulders, sniffed at the cold, and wiped at
6:34
Speaker 2: the rime of frost forming on his enameled breastplate with
6:37
Speaker 2: his leather gloves. He grunted and dug his heels into
6:41
Speaker 2: his young bay mare. He felt her muscles respond as
6:43
Speaker 2: she eagerly carried him to the top of a hillock. There,
6:47
Speaker 2: within the shadows of a copse of trees, he drew rain.
6:52
Speaker 2: To his left, a ruined watchtower lay in a crumbling heap,
6:56
Speaker 2: blocks of blackened stone choked with coarse weeds, a shroud
7:00
Speaker 2: of decaying greenery, and wet, cold yellow leaves. The crumbled
7:04
Speaker 2: ruin marked the spot where Sir Buckvine, where.
7:08
Speaker 2: Had told him to go. If the man couldn't call
7:11
Speaker 2: Ariston by his own appropriately knightly title of sir, he
7:15
Speaker 2: could omit the same. Did Buckvine send minders to watch Ariston?
7:23
Speaker 2: I think that is likely, and the oracle agrees with
7:26
Speaker 2: me with a yes and. Ah, so he still doesn't
7:30
Speaker 2: trust Ariston, suspects he might possibly still be under some
7:33
Speaker 2: influence of magic, despite Dr. Poole's reassurances to the contrary.
7:38
Speaker 2: I think that means both Grel and Dale, Buckvine's minions
7:43
Speaker 2: from Link 3, are with him. The mare's breath billowed
7:49
Speaker 2: a white cloud into the shadowed chill. He patted the
7:53
Speaker 2: animal's neck with his leather gloves and looked about him.
7:57
Speaker 2: Behind him, over his shoulder, he saw Gant Manor, a
8:01
Speaker 2: two-hour trot to the east, peeking up through the trees
8:04
Speaker 2: where it sat largely crumbling on a hill, fast becoming wooded.
8:08
Speaker 2: And beyond the manor, further east, he could barely make
8:11
Speaker 2: out the silver ribbon of the Talon River as it rushed,
8:14
Speaker 2: churning southward, swollen by the recent rains in the northern
8:18
Speaker 2: mountains that fed it. He glowered at the two riders
8:22
Speaker 2: that followed him up the rise, their own mounts misting
8:25
Speaker 2: the air with white as they drew near, hooves churning
8:28
Speaker 2: up dark soil and yellow leaves. Dale and Grell, his
8:33
Speaker 2: faithful minders, a reminder that Buckevine still didn't fully trust him.
8:38
Speaker 2: They were dressed in dark brown leathers, cloaks of mottled
8:42
Speaker 2: grey and green, short swords and daggers on their hips,
8:45
Speaker 2: and small crossbows dangled across their saddles within easy reach.
8:50
Speaker 2: Grel openly flaunted the ring of office he had taken
8:53
Speaker 2: from Aristan on his own breast. Even if it no
8:57
Speaker 2: longer meant anything, even if it was a conniving witch
9:01
Speaker 2: who gave it to him, it was still his property.
9:04
Speaker 2: Your lordship should not leave his guard so readily. Grel
9:08
Speaker 2: said in mocking tones, his thin frame leaning forward over
9:13
Speaker 2: the neck of his mount. A grin on his face
9:15
Speaker 2: below sunken, shadowed eyes. The stolen ring dangled on its chain. Greasy,
9:21
Speaker 2: unwashed hair collected twigs and leaves. How else can we
9:25
Speaker 2: protect his lordship? His antics elicited a low chuckle from Dale,
9:31
Speaker 2: a somewhat larger and fatter man with a scraggly dark
9:34
Speaker 2: beard and dark shifting eyes set in a visage of
9:38
Speaker 2: equally unsavory mien. Beneath his helm, Aristan lifted his chin
9:44
Speaker 2: taller and ignored the jibe. They were beneath him. But Buckvine,
9:50
Speaker 2: the man irked him so. Yes, Ariston had been under
9:54
Speaker 2: the sway of the sorceress's spell, but Buckvine was also
9:57
Speaker 2: not the same man Ariston had remembered. The man who
10:01
Speaker 2: had so nobly commanded true warriors of honorable repute now
10:05
Speaker 2: sunk so low that he recruited men such as Dale
10:08
Speaker 2: and Grell and many others now flocking to King Borland's banner,
10:13
Speaker 2: most of them vagrants, vagabonds, thieves, and cutthroats. The Gaunt
10:18
Speaker 2: of Gant County. A sidelong glance caught Grel sniffing and
10:25
Speaker 2: wiping a strand of snot from his nose with a
10:27
Speaker 2: knit glove. The other man's small eyes studied the terrain
10:33
Speaker 2: below them. Was King Morlane truly hurting for warriors that
10:38
Speaker 2: he had to scrape so low into the manpower barrel?
10:42
Speaker 2: What was he promising or paying to gather such a
10:45
Speaker 2: warband of bandits and raiders? and what would keep them
10:48
Speaker 2: in check to face the earth-rending thunder of that first
10:52
Speaker 2: mounted charge of horse flesh and steel when it came
10:57
Speaker 2: to true combat? They peered west, their backs to the
11:01
Speaker 2: rising sun, the sky a deep soul-stirring blue from horizon
11:05
Speaker 2: to horizon, aside from the retreating bank of dark clouds
11:09
Speaker 2: over the northern mountains and wisps of white clouds gathering
11:13
Speaker 2: in from the east. Eristan felt a few warm rays
11:17
Speaker 2: of the yellow orb at his back eke through the
11:20
Speaker 2: golden leaves on white birch branches. Branches growing more and
11:25
Speaker 2: more bare of leaves as a stiff gusting of wind
11:28
Speaker 2: flapped his cloak and sent more of them drifting down
11:32
Speaker 2: in a rain of yellow and amber through the cold
11:35
Speaker 2: morning air. The pleasant days had waned into evening ever
11:40
Speaker 2: sooner and sooner as autumn fast approached the cold death
11:43
Speaker 2: grip of winter. In another month, they might very well
11:46
Speaker 2: see snow in the lowlands. In fact, the recent rainfall
11:50
Speaker 2: over the last couple of days had left a dusting
11:53
Speaker 2: of white on the lower foothills and drifts of snow
11:57
Speaker 2: up on the peaks of the Talon Heights, the range
12:00
Speaker 2: of mountains that marked the northern boundary of Gant County.
12:05
Speaker 2: Aristan blew out a misting of white breath. This campaign
12:09
Speaker 2: against the Witch Queen had better get started soon. He
12:13
Speaker 2: didn't look forward to the idea of wintering with buckvine
12:16
Speaker 2: and a plethora of starving bandits. He scanned the rolling
12:21
Speaker 2: hills and saw a contingent of warriors moving deeper west
12:24
Speaker 2: to east into Ghent County. This will be secure an
12:30
Speaker 2: advantage by studying the situation. I rolled a two on
12:34
Speaker 2: the action dice plus one for his wits against a
12:37
Speaker 2: two and a seven on the challenge dice for a
12:39
Speaker 2: weak hit. His momentum goes up by one, now three
12:42
Speaker 2: out of ten. Are these soldiers from King Morlane? I
12:47
Speaker 2: think that is somewhat likely, but the oracle gives a three,
12:50
Speaker 2: a no. More bandits, then, to join the rebellion? Fifty-fifty chance.
12:56
Speaker 2: The oracle says yes. Has Buckvine said anything about King
13:00
Speaker 2: Morlane bringing men to the fight? I think that's likely,
13:04
Speaker 2: and the oracle says yes. No black banner snapped in
13:10
Speaker 2: the wind, no outriders from the usurper Morlane. That was
13:15
Speaker 2: what the witch queen had called him. No banner at all,
13:18
Speaker 2: just a mixed group of men, women, and even some
13:21
Speaker 2: older lads, perhaps two score strong, armed with bows and knives, mostly,
13:25
Speaker 2: a few spears. More warriors for the cause, Del said
13:31
Speaker 2: with a grin to Grell. More grist for the mill,
13:36
Speaker 2: Aristan muttered. his mouth taking on a sour taste, knowing
13:40
Speaker 2: what would befall them in a true stand-up fight. Will
13:44
Speaker 2: the king not send true men to fight? Aye, Groth shouted,
13:48
Speaker 2: his spittle flying into Ariston's face. Just because they don't
13:52
Speaker 2: have a fancy set of armor, a shiny sword, and
13:54
Speaker 2: don't ride so high and mighty on a flashy steed,
13:57
Speaker 2: my lord, don't mean they can't fight. It doesn't mean
14:02
Speaker 2: they can either, Ariston said simply. I've seen warfare for
14:06
Speaker 2: many years, and I know what ruin, anger, and metal
14:10
Speaker 2: on a large scale can make upon unarmored flesh.
14:14
Speaker 3: Do you?
14:16
Speaker 2: Grell held his gaze for a moment and then scowled
14:19
Speaker 2: and looked away, his face unsettled. He cast Aristand another
14:23
Speaker 2: dark look and then drove his heels into his mount
14:27
Speaker 2: and rode down the hill to meet the oncomers. Let's
14:33
Speaker 2: take a break from the narrative and do a little housekeeping.
14:36
Speaker 2: As I've listened to the previous links, I've noted all
14:39
Speaker 2: the places mentioned therein, and I think we're in need
14:41
Speaker 2: of a map, be it ever so crude. The Queen's
14:45
Speaker 2: New Road, Gant County, Gant Manor, Fort Dunmere, Duchy of Morlane,
14:51
Speaker 2: the village mentioned in link one, and Aristan's ancestral home.
14:56
Speaker 2: We've heard the names, but where are they? I've created
15:00
Speaker 2: a rough hand-drawn, mouse-drawn map, that I have included in
15:03
Speaker 2: the show notes. It is a simple relational map with
15:06
Speaker 2: some very rough distances. For those listening, Fort Dunmere lies
15:10
Speaker 2: on our eastern edge of the map at a crossing
15:13
Speaker 2: of important trade routes heading north and south and east
15:16
Speaker 2: and west through the kingdom. Moving west about 40 miles
15:21
Speaker 2: along the New Queen Road, we next come to Whitestone.
15:26
Speaker 2: This is the village, the unnamed village, that was 15
15:29
Speaker 2: miles at Aristan's back. when he was approaching the edge
15:32
Speaker 2: of Gantt County a day's ride away in Link One.
15:36
Speaker 2: Gantt County is roughly a rectangular region of 80 miles
15:40
Speaker 2: north to south and 100 miles or so east to west.
15:45
Speaker 2: There is little in the way of true civilization the
15:47
Speaker 2: further you head west from Fort Dunmere into Gantt County.
15:51
Speaker 2: Gantt County, from the details established, seems to be a
15:54
Speaker 2: run-down region with trees and hills, swift-flowing rivers, perhaps some lakes.
16:00
Speaker 2: and several moderate small villages. Moving on from the map,
16:05
Speaker 2: let's find out some additional details. It sounds like Sir
16:09
Speaker 2: Wallace Buckvine and Dr. Poole are forming a rebellion to
16:12
Speaker 2: overthrow the Witch Queen and restore King Morlane to his
16:16
Speaker 2: rightful place on the throne. They're planning an attack somewhere
16:20
Speaker 2: and are hoping to lure her forces towards Gant Manor.
16:24
Speaker 2: Any Witch Queen worth her salt likely has spies in
16:27
Speaker 2: the form of... rats and ravens, etc. Correct? I think
16:32
Speaker 2: that is likely, and the oracle agrees with a yes.
16:35
Speaker 2: And I think she's aware of something brewing in Gant County.
16:39
Speaker 2: After all, anyone who dreams up a wave of arachnids
16:42
Speaker 2: vomiting from within someone's innards does not strike me as
16:46
Speaker 2: one who is playing softball here. She probably knows much
16:49
Speaker 2: more than Buckvine and Dr. Poole think. And after three
16:53
Speaker 2: and a half weeks, I think she's had time to act. So,
16:57
Speaker 2: some more questions. Is the ring that Grell took from
17:01
Speaker 2: Aristan enchanted somehow? I think it is likely she would
17:05
Speaker 2: have given Aristan an enchanted ring so that she could
17:08
Speaker 2: keep tabs on him. Is that the case? Likely, yes.
17:14
Speaker 2: What kind of connection is it? Can she hear what
17:17
Speaker 2: people are saying within a certain radius? Again, likely, and yes.
17:22
Speaker 2: Plus an event, trick slash hope. Ah, Lovely. It's like
17:29
Speaker 2: she has the manner bugged. At least, wherever Grell has
17:32
Speaker 2: been since he's been wearing the ring the last several weeks.
17:36
Speaker 2: Has Grell been privy to the conversations with Buckvine and Dr.
17:40
Speaker 2: Pooley about the upcoming attack? He strikes me more as
17:43
Speaker 2: the type of hired muscle. I'll say somewhat unlikely. The
17:48
Speaker 2: oracle says no. So the Witch Queen doesn't know the
17:52
Speaker 2: specifics of the rebels' planned attack, because Buckvine has thankfully
17:56
Speaker 2: been keeping a lid on it. But she does know
17:59
Speaker 2: that Grell and others have been gathering a warband of
18:02
Speaker 2: bandits and thieves. And the minute Grell finds out what
18:05
Speaker 2: the real plan is, she will know as well. And
18:09
Speaker 2: the above random event? A trick of hope? Well, that
18:15
Speaker 2: will come later. Do warriors from King Morlane ever come?
18:21
Speaker 2: Fifty-fifty chance. The oracle says no. And what's the weather
18:26
Speaker 2: for the next scene? One to twenty. Low is bad.
18:28
Speaker 2: High is good. I get a four. Back to the narrative.
18:35
Speaker 2: It was evening by the time they met with and
18:37
Speaker 2: escorted three different groups of bandits to the manor, and
18:41
Speaker 2: night came on quickly. Buckvine and now dozens of other
18:45
Speaker 2: warriors dug into the flesh of roasted boars. A large
18:50
Speaker 2: fire roared from within the hearth in the feast hall,
18:54
Speaker 2: and the smells of salted pig, cheap ale, candle wax,
18:57
Speaker 2: and smoke hung in a miasma. But the smells reminded
19:01
Speaker 2: Aristan of his own hunger. He was grateful to be
19:04
Speaker 2: out of the cold. Aristan approached Buckvine. He didn't see Dr. Pooley.
19:10
Speaker 2: The man must be working down below again. He mentioned
19:14
Speaker 2: crafting something to aid them in their surprise attack, but
19:18
Speaker 2: he didn't say what it was.' Eh, Ariston,' Buckvine grunted
19:24
Speaker 2: out a semi-amiable greeting. As the large man tore off
19:29
Speaker 2: some boar flesh with his incisors, his jaw muscles flexing
19:33
Speaker 2: as he chewed, watered ale chasing it down, spilling onto
19:38
Speaker 2: an already stained tabard over a dark male shirt.' Buckvine,'
19:44
Speaker 2: Ariston nodded. He stood, looking down at the man.' You' re nervous?'
19:50
Speaker 2: Ariston said flatly, folding his arms. More chewing and slurping
19:58
Speaker 2: as Buckvine hunched over his meal. Buckvine's eyes flicked away
20:03
Speaker 2: from Ariston to the fireplace some distance away where Grell
20:07
Speaker 2: told a body tale. that Ariston couldn't make out, thankfully,
20:12
Speaker 2: and he guffawed, spraying ale all over Dale, Grail's brain
20:16
Speaker 2: laugh rising up, adding to the cacophony of the others
20:19
Speaker 2: who joined him. Ariston grimaced and turned back to his
20:24
Speaker 2: old friend. Buckvine chewed mechanically, and his eyes had a
20:28
Speaker 2: faraway look. It's been four days. Where is King Morlane
20:33
Speaker 2: and his men? He's coming. You've been saying that for
20:38
Speaker 2: the past week and a half, because it's true. This
20:42
Speaker 2: is a fool's errand, Eristan muttered darkly. You'll see, Buckvine
20:48
Speaker 2: hissed around a fresh mouthful. Once he arrives, we strike,
20:53
Speaker 2: where we planned, just as we planned. Once he arrives?
20:59
Speaker 2: Where is he then? The scouts say he's two days distant.
21:04
Speaker 2: They had been sitting in this ruin of a manor
21:06
Speaker 2: for too long. Two more days? Aristan felt unsettled. Buckvine,
21:13
Speaker 2: we cannot stay here, he pleaded. See reason, my friend. Okay,
21:21
Speaker 2: this is a compel move with heart. I am rolling
21:24
Speaker 2: one on the action dice, plus three for Aristan's considerable
21:28
Speaker 2: charisma for a very... Not a good roll of four
21:35
Speaker 2: against five and a seven on the action dice for, ah,
21:38
Speaker 2: a bad roll and a miss. Buckvine searched to his feet,
21:44
Speaker 2: knocking his chair over and rattling the table and spilling
21:47
Speaker 2: his tankard of ale. I'm not your friend! Get out
21:50
Speaker 2: of my hall! Buckvine roared, brandishing a haunch of meat.
21:56
Speaker 2: It's your fault we're in this mess. Get out, or
21:59
Speaker 2: I'll see you again in chains. Conversation had ceased across
22:05
Speaker 2: the hall, and all eyes turned upon them. Grell had
22:09
Speaker 2: a pleased look on his face. Ariston held up his hands,
22:12
Speaker 2: backing away. He shook his head sadly, turned, and walked
22:17
Speaker 2: towards the exit. Buck Vine's gaze scoured him before the
22:21
Speaker 2: huge man picked up his chair, sat back down, and
22:24
Speaker 2: started stuffing more food into his mouth. Okay, this is
22:30
Speaker 2: a blow to Aristan's spirit. It drops by 1, down
22:34
Speaker 2: to 1 out of 5 now. He does the endure
22:37
Speaker 2: stress move. I roll a 4 on the action dice,
22:39
Speaker 2: plus 3 for his heart. It's a 7 against a
22:42
Speaker 2: 3 and a 2 on the challenge dice for a
22:45
Speaker 2: strong hit. He will drop his momentum down by 1,
22:49
Speaker 2: now 2 out of 10, to bring his spirit back
22:52
Speaker 2: up to 2 out of 5. Outside in the courtyard...
22:59
Speaker 2: Ariston sighed. He breezed in the brisk air and made
23:02
Speaker 2: his way atop the crumbling wall. Hundreds of mouths to
23:06
Speaker 2: feed and winter coming on and no King Morlane and
23:10
Speaker 2: a buck vine acting the perfect fool. He felt the
23:14
Speaker 2: reassurance of the familiar worn pommel under his hand. His
23:18
Speaker 2: grandfather's sword. It had seen him through much. He hoped
23:23
Speaker 2: it'd see him through much more. He saw a dozen
23:26
Speaker 2: campfires from within the manor's walls, each with eight or
23:30
Speaker 2: ten men about them, more of the gaunt of Gant County.
23:36
Speaker 2: He grimaced, shivered, and drew his cloak about him as
23:40
Speaker 2: a single snowflake alighted on his nose. It is dark outside.
23:49
Speaker 2: Does Ariston see the raven spy from the witch queen
23:53
Speaker 2: in a nearby tree? This is face danger with wits.
23:58
Speaker 2: I rolled a 1 on the action dice, plus 1
24:02
Speaker 2: for a whopping total of 2, against a 9 and
24:06
Speaker 2: a 10 on the challenge dice. Ugh, a horrible miss.
24:11
Speaker 2: Pay the price. A lad, a boy of about 15,
24:18
Speaker 2: peach fuzz on his cheeks, carried a short bow, and
24:24
Speaker 2: the torchlight from a sconce along the wall. A quiver
24:28
Speaker 2: of arrows on his back, he looked left and then right,
24:31
Speaker 2: then saw Aristin. Aristin smiled at him. He smiled back,
24:37
Speaker 2: and the awkward teenage face gave way for just a
24:40
Speaker 2: moment to the face of innocent youth. I was sent
24:45
Speaker 2: to watch the walls, he explained to Aristin. Aristin nodded
24:50
Speaker 2: and smiled at the lad. Good lad, Come on up, then,
24:54
Speaker 2: he patted the wall next to him. The boy reminded
24:58
Speaker 2: him a bit of Ivar, and he needed a squire.
25:02
Speaker 3: Maybe.
25:04
Speaker 2: What's your name? Hadifax, the boy said with a grin,
25:08
Speaker 2: settling down next to him on the cold stone. I
25:11
Speaker 2: was named after a hissing sound, a flash of a
25:15
Speaker 2: dark barb and a thick shaft sprouted from the boy's
25:18
Speaker 2: surprised throat. warm blood spraying across Ariston's surprised face and chest.
25:24
Speaker 3: The boy staggered, gurgled, clutched at his throat, and collapsed
25:30
Speaker 3: into Ariston's arms with a final sigh as pandemonium erupted.
25:43
Speaker 4: My family has served the oath for generations, guarded that
25:47
Speaker 4: which was left to us, without ever knowing the truth
25:50
Speaker 4: of it.
25:52
Speaker 2: I am not one of them.
25:55
Speaker 1: I broke my oath, broke.
25:57
Speaker 4: Into the crypt, and found a woman and a weapon. Together,
26:03
Speaker 4: they would lead me across streams of time, into the
26:07
Speaker 4: paths of demons and gods.
26:10
Speaker 5: The Dark Razor Chronicles, a serialized dark fantasy podcast, available
26:17
Speaker 5: wherever you listen. Link 8 Something a little different this time.
26:28
Speaker 5: Link 8 of the Dice Chain was played by the
26:30
Speaker 5: creator of the marvellous Keep on the Borderlands webcomic, Justin Feel.
26:36
Speaker 5: The original intention was for this link to be created
26:39
Speaker 5: as a webcomic, but sadly it was not to be.
26:43
Speaker 5: Never say never. So no gameplay this time. Instead, I
26:48
Speaker 5: will narrate the outcome of his play session for you.
26:52
Speaker 5: using his notes and page drafts as my guide. Many thanks, Justin.
27:05
Speaker 5: The lad, Halifax, had stared up at Ariston, utterly bemused
27:09
Speaker 5: as the light left his eyes. The knight, hardened to
27:13
Speaker 5: death though he was, felt he could hardly drag his
27:16
Speaker 5: gaze away from the crude black arrowhead that protruded from
27:20
Speaker 5: the boy's throat. and when he did, he wished fervently
27:24
Speaker 5: that he had not. The creature loomed above him, something
27:29
Speaker 5: so vast and beyond his understanding that he scarcely believed
27:33
Speaker 5: the evidence of his own eyes. With a beat of
27:36
Speaker 5: impossibly huge wings, the creature settled upon the battlements before him,
27:41
Speaker 5: talons grinding stone to powder. He followed limbs, writhing obscenely
27:46
Speaker 5: with muscle up to a brightly plumaged body.
27:49
Speaker 2: And beyond that to.
27:51
Speaker 5: A spiked tail that snaked and thrashed the air behind
27:54
Speaker 5: it in fury. But it was the face, the face
27:59
Speaker 5: it could be called, that was his undoing. Porcelain pale,
28:04
Speaker 5: the features seemingly painted onto a smooth, mask-like surface, it
28:09
Speaker 5: was at once beautiful and profoundly disturbing. Then its eyes
28:15
Speaker 5: met his, and his mind went blank. All was silence.
28:20
Speaker 5: The world tilted, all sense of verticality suddenly erased, and
28:24
Speaker 5: then he was dimly aware that he was falling. Falling
28:28
Speaker 5: from a wall walk of sufficient height to leave him
28:31
Speaker 5: crippled at very best. Beyond all good fortune, he struck
28:36
Speaker 5: deep hay, though he struck hard enough to drive the
28:39
Speaker 5: air from his lungs. Still, the impact broke the spell,
28:43
Speaker 5: enough to register the sudden cacophony that had erupted within
28:47
Speaker 5: the castle walls. Around him, the courtyard had dissolved into
28:51
Speaker 5: chaos as short, sinewy creatures wielding cruel, serrated blades swarmed
28:57
Speaker 5: into the courtyard. At their head strode a mighty, olive-skinned man-beast,
29:02
Speaker 5: tusk-toothed and brutish, a torch clutched in one massive fist,
29:07
Speaker 5: a stone-headed axe in the other. A handful of Buckvine's
29:11
Speaker 5: men raced out to meet the invaders, swords gleaming in
29:15
Speaker 5: the torchlight, but the weight of numbers was hard against them.
29:19
Speaker 5: In moments, half their number were cut down, the other
29:22
Speaker 5: half fleeing in panic. Inexorably, Ariston found his gaze dragged
29:27
Speaker 5: back to that hideous silhouette that loomed like a premonition
29:31
Speaker 5: of doom upon the battlements. How could they possibly hope
29:35
Speaker 5: to stand against that? This way, he said. Ariston, if
29:40
Speaker 5: you want to live. The urgent whisper brought him back
29:44
Speaker 5: to himself. Blinking, he allowed Dr. Pooley to help him upright,
29:49
Speaker 5: then guide him towards a narrow, open door. Beyond it,
29:53
Speaker 5: Buckvine and two of his disreputable lackeys stared up, slack-jawed
29:58
Speaker 5: at the terror upon the battlements. Run, Ariston whispered.
30:02
Speaker 3: Run!
30:04
Speaker 5: The men required little persuasion. Ariston staggered after them down
30:08
Speaker 5: the torch-lit corridor as they took off at speed. As
30:12
Speaker 5: they went, more of Buckfine's men joined their number.
30:16
Speaker 2: What was that monster?
30:17
Speaker 5: He gasped as strength began to return to his limbs.
30:21
Speaker 5: Pooley turned his face grim. That creature is the source
30:25
Speaker 5: of the Queen's power. They are bound as one, but
30:28
Speaker 5: I do not know who controls who Buckvine spat. Enough
30:33
Speaker 5: time for chatter later. Where are we going, you snake?
30:37
Speaker 5: I know these tunnels, Pooley. They lead out of the manor.
30:40
Speaker 5: Of course they do, came Pooley's retort. That thing back
30:44
Speaker 5: there would slaughter you all. I cleared this path myself.
30:47
Speaker 5: You'd do well not to doubt my loyalty. They burst
30:51
Speaker 5: from an exit, cunningly hidden from prying eyes and into
30:54
Speaker 5: a moonlit grotto beyond the walls of the castle on
30:57
Speaker 5: the edge of the woods. The party paused for a
31:00
Speaker 5: moment to catch their breath. We must tell King Morlane
31:04
Speaker 5: what has happened here, Ariston gasped, his mind still reeling
31:08
Speaker 5: from the horror of that dread gaze. Pooley was about
31:12
Speaker 5: to answer when some two score figures melted silently out
31:16
Speaker 5: from the treeline, weapons drawn. Before anyone had a chance
31:20
Speaker 5: to react, one of their number stepped out and into
31:23
Speaker 5: the light. Ariston's eyes widened in astonishment as he recognised her, brother,
31:30
Speaker 5: Alice called to him, smiling wickedly. It seems I have
31:34
Speaker 5: to rescue you yet again.
31:45
Speaker 1: You've been listening to Dice Chain. In this episode we
31:48
Speaker 1: heard from two different podcasters. Link 7 was created by
31:52
Speaker 1: Jared Hess of Roll, Ponder and Play. Link 8 was
31:56
Speaker 1: produced by Carl White. of the Lone Adventurer podcast, in
31:59
Speaker 1: collaboration with Justin Pfeil of the Keep on the Borderlands webcomic.
32:03
Speaker 1: I encourage you to check out all three of these
32:05
Speaker 1: talented storytellers. You can also find the promised stats, maps,
32:10
Speaker 1: and also Justin's rough drawings at taleofthemanticore.com. Episode 4 will
32:14
Speaker 1: be out shortly. Until then, you can always find new
32:17
Speaker 1: and exciting solo RPG pods at solorollplayersnetwork.com.