Hello and welcome to the Rusty Quill Gaming Podcast. I'm your host and GM, Ben Meredith, and with me today I have... Ben Meredith. Ben Meredith. Ben Meredith. And Ben Meredith. Okay, good stuff. Nice. Fab. Just what I wanted. And who are you playing? Grizzop. Drick. Angsterdam. Joia. Gilvar. Gilvar. And Zolf Smith. Good stuff. All right, so when last we left our group of vagabonds, you were having a nice sleep.
We had a lovely, pleasant, chill, relaxing evening in a nice pub. So presumably you'd like a will save, right? I was about to say, no will saves. No will saves for this. You're all good. I'm so lost and confused. Can I trust this far less than death in the night? Okay, Grizzot does not wake up. Alex, you can see yourself out. We're back in familiar territory. You can play a new weasel called Ziphog.
Oh, and here was me going to play a small mouse called Vesqueak. Vesqueak. Oh, Vesqueak. That's good. That's pretty good. But it's not one of my characters, so it is illegal. That's a grudging picture of your acknowledgement there, Ben. No, I just, I was like, oh, that's nice. And then I thought about it and just realised how well that works together. You know, credit where it's due. Vesqueak is excellent.
Right, so you wake up, you know, sort of at dawn or so. You are, you know, survivalist and adventurer, so you're used to not being able to sleep in. And I'm going to say you're all kind of just enjoying the fact that you could have a lie-in. So you're taking that moment of lying in bed, you're awake, but you don't have to get up and it's warm and cosy. When you hear an altercation a little ways away. And surprisingly, it doesn't sound like it has anything to do with you lot. What do you do? Grizzop's been in this town for...
over half an hour, so the altercation probably has something. Oh, quite possibly. I was going to say, yeah, you ask what we do. I mean, what Grizzop does is immediately hop out of bed where he's been waiting for everyone to wake up and then rush over to see what's going on. Okay. Zolf is going to do the same, but slowly... No. Medium. Medium speed. Not at Grizzop speed, but quickly for everyone else. Sorry, just coming after Grizzop. He seems slow, but he's not actually slow.
Chilvar will swish stylishly out and arrive fashionably late. Swish stylishly? Are you wearing a robe? Yes. Oh, a robe. No, I've got a big black cloak. It's on my equipment. Have you got a Venetian half-cake? Oh, no, I said it was stylish, yet it was well-cut, but capable of blending into shadows. So, you know, it's a matte greyish-brown, which sounds like the sort of thing that fades into shadows, but has a bit of a, you know, but it's well-cut, it's dark, it's cool.
Nice. Chilvar is cool. I think that's what I remember about hearing the special. And I think this is Matt. Very. I mean, everybody interpreted him as very handsome, so, you know. I'm a raccoon with a cool cape and a waxed tail. I'm cool. Waxed tail. It's in an intricate moustache. Yeah, the facial hair of the butt. Yeah. Yeah. That's what I was going for. It's, like, braided and it's got, like, cool bits going on. Yeah, it's fashionable. Top of the ear tuft. Those are preened and curl over like a moustache, like a handlebar moustache.
This is woodland fashion, people. All your fur is just mustaches. Yes, the whole way through. Mustaches all the way down. The fabled full-body tash. Yes. And Zoya. Zoya is receding extremely quickly, but is actually throwing on all her equipment first. So we'll probably arrive after both Grizzop and Zulf, but fully equipped. But she's doing it.
at top speed, but also feels the need to actually kind of ready. Oh yeah, that's the point. Zulf is there in his pants, but with the glaive. I adore that. Yes, that's, yeah. Good stuff. Well played. Is Grizzop putting on equipment? I think Grizzop would take whatever equipment was to hand, which to my eye would be his bow and one arrow, because if you can't solve the problem with one arrow...
I mean, what are you doing, you know? Okay, all right. So I'm going to open this up with Grizzop, and then each of you feel free to interject or put yourself into the scene whenever you feel is appropriate based on the established actions. So, Grizzop rounds the corner at what can only be described as a sprint, and you see two individuals who are right up in each other's faces, like, screaming at each other, having a really, really intense argument. One is a large fox whose fur is like a deep, ruddy red, red-brown sort of thing. So he is kind of enormous in all proportions.
very fat very like powerful like large limbs and dressed kind of well but very practically chunky very fine leather apron and sort of a shirt with the sleeves rolled up But again, the shirt is not filthy. It's very clean. It's very well cared for. Sorry, that's like hot fox. Okay, we've got hot fox. I was like blacksmith fox. Daddy fox, yes. Is daddy fox wielding any kind of weapon or not? No, no, no. So neither of these people are wielding weapons. Okay, cool. They appear to both be civilians or like the phrase effectively that this book kind of has for the people who just are living is denizens because they're denizens of the woodlands. Understood. So the other one is a very thin, quite lanky and very finely dressed rabbit. So she has a pair of spectacles kind of perched on the end of her.
nose snout muzzle i don't know what rabbits have you know face yeah it's nose i'm just gonna say nose yeah in the appropriate part of her face her ears are sort of like right stood on end very agitated but both of them are like giving as good as each other absolutely screaming in each other's faces as you arrive like a small crowd's already gathered and there are a couple of guards who in this clearing a sort of assistance militia and they are wearing a kind of outfit but in the way that like people who are deputized they've got kind of like a hat and a badge and then they're just kind of wearing the stuff they would normally wear and they're looking a bit like do we what do we do they're not like You know, this is definitely a disturbance, but also, you know, yeah, yeah. People have a right to shout. Yeah, and sort of as you arrive, the fox is screaming at the rabbit, Tamara, what the hell? And I'm not going to actually shout. Yeah, of course. Tamara, what the absolute heck do you think your daughter is doing with my son? And Tamara is shouting back, I don't know, what is your son doing with my daughter? Where is she? What has he done with her? And they continue in this sort of thing.
Is Grizzop allowing this to play out? Are you interposing yourself? I think Grizzop... I'm going to play true to what I actually think of, Grizzop, rather than just deliberately set fire to the world, which is... Incredible. I never thought it would happen. Grizzop never actually, like, shot first unless he thought someone was actively a villain. Yes.
So I think what Grizzop would do is wait a little bit to get the lay of the land first. When it becomes aware that the militia are clearly going to do nothing and they're just screaming at one another, eventually I think Grizzop would just yell as loud as them, if not louder. Okay, well, so when you give it a chance for them to play out, you can tell quite clearly that the power dynamic here is pretty equal. These people, based on the way they're dressed, the way they're holding themselves, are pretty well-to-do. They seem like they have a community leader kind of vibe going on. So they're both powerful patriarch and matriarch in their own respects. And it looks like, from reading their body language, they're just both...
absolutely petrified about what's happened to their child. Yeah, yeah. Grizzop will yell. Oi! Disgruntled parents! Look over here!
Do they hear and notice? Uh... Ooh, I don't know. Yeah, let's see. Is there a move? Yeah, yeah, you're persuading NPC. I guess you're rolling with charm, but... Nice. My worst stat. Therefore, the one I want to use most. That's a 2d6. I rolled a 4, 5, 6, 7, minus 1, take me down to 6. Okay. Okay, they just straight up ignore you. You're a reasonably small weasel. Your actual loudest shout is pretty clearly just drowned out. It's not even that they're ignoring you, it's just they just haven't heard you. In which case, Grishoff's a little bit like, Oi! I said...
Grizzop stomps over and just bashes both of their knees with his bow. Not hard enough to, like, actually damage just as a ignore this, you know? Okay. They both turn to you. Well, they turn. They look to head height of their expected head height and then they look down to this diminutive weasel. Oh, and also, sorry, from their yells, so the fox is called Jasper and the rabbit is called Tamora. And Tamora says, what do you want, outsider?
I'm here to find your kids, so maybe if you stop yelling long enough, you can tell me what's going on, so me and my friends can go find your kids, bring it all back, and everything can be fine, because that militia are clearly not going to do anything, but that's what we do. So tell us the thing, and then it's done. And then I can stop yelling, you can stop yelling, and everything's just going to be fine. Find my kids. The only thing you need to do to find my kids is to ask that one. Basically putting her finger, like, almost up Jasper's nose. Oh, that's a bow smack. That's a bow smack on the hand. No, none of that. Look, okay. It's clear you both don't know, so just tell me what you do know, and then we can move on from this yelling conversation. Yeah, okay. Zolf was second in the marching order.
So I guess Zolf turns up to the scene and sees Grizzop smacking civilians. So given the volume that all of this conversation is being had at, you've heard pretty much all of this. Because everyone's just yelling as loud as Grizzop can. You've got a decent crowd now. This is a proper to-do. Everyone's like, ooh. Okay, Zolf strides in and he goes, right, knock it off, all of you.
Attends to physically part them. Okay, in which case... Whatever, we don't even realize this is fine. Yeah, you interpose yourself. Your combatants, they are genuinely just taken aback by the fact that this Badger is in his underpants. And armed. But has a large weapon. Oh, here's one question. And I would have asked for Grizzop, but I think it's a funnier question for Zolf. What are the underpants? What design does Zolf have? I feel like Zolf wears long johns. Ah. Because I associate those with sailors. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Nice, nice. Long johns with a little butt flap. Oh, yes, absolutely.
It's just practical, you know, for the night. It's cold. Yeah, great. Okay, so this badger wearing long johns has interposed himself because you're quite, I guess... That's a good point, actually. I know, obviously, Zulf is a dwarf in, you know, the RQG universe. Is Zulf a big badger or a short badger or...? I feel like just a normal-sized badger because, like, in terms of species. Yeah, yeah. So he has badger traits instead of dwarven traits.
Good stuff. So that means you are about as big as this kind of very big fox, because a badger is a large animal, I think. Yeah. Badgers are bigger than you think. Much scarier up close than you think. Oh, I remember being given, I was doing a LARP once at a scout camp, and the person there was like, yeah, there are badgers in those woods. If you see a badger, run away. Just run. Just run away from that badger, because they will mess you up. I think badgers are sort of lower to the ground, but chonkier than foxes. Yeah, that's a good way of putting it. All right. They fill the space that they are in, you know? Sure. So that works, actually. In which case, you're not quite as tall as this big fox, but you are, like,
wider in a much more muscular sense. Yeah, this fox is large and looks physically powerful, but he's obviously not living the life of a vagabond, which has a certain hardening quality on a body, just because you don't eat much and spend all your time running away from things. So yeah, they kind of, at this point, are kind of stunned a bit into silence and they look at you a little bit dumbfounded but no less furious. Okay, Zolf is going to take advantage of that silence and he says, how about you all calm down and you let us take care of whatever's happened to your kids because we're qualified and you're not. Okay, so at this point, I think we're probably at Zoya time because I think your tailbone's fashion will be late. Okay, having said it's Zoya time, I'm immediately imagining some kind of dance move which brings you into the scene.
So yeah, as the guards kind of dance fight their way up to the group. No, so the guards are kind of cautiously approaching and ask Jasper and Tamora, like, sorry, is there a problem here? And, you know, Tamora kind of looks around and just waves the way, goes, no, no, not a problem you can fix. Go away. And they're like, oh, I'm quite cowed, kind of retreat back. So like, okay, fine. Don't have to deal with the scary people. Fine. And both of them, at what Zulfa said, kind of deflate a little bit, sort of the initial fury and anger, because they have been given a moment to think. They're starting to process kind of what has been offered here. And Tamora just pinches the bridge of her nose. Okay, fine.
What do you want? Your mercenaries, I guess you're going to want paying? Sure, yeah, definitely. Fine. Apologies, I have just got here, but I have heard what has been going on. Any payment would depend on the danger of any task that we undertake, but perhaps, look, clearly from the way you are both dressed, you are both people offstanding in this community, and there are lots of people watching. Let us all go inside, have some water, and take a breath before we continue this conversation. It seems very clear to me, both of you, mostly worried about your children. It's understandable to be tense in that situation, but let's...
Let's take this somewhere more private. Both of you can sit down and take things a bit more calmly. Yeah, I mean, for all we know, kind of run off with each other and be absolutely fine. Well, it's fine. We know where they started from, right? Yeah, fine, Jasper says. And you can see kind of like there's tears in his eyes as he's calmed down enough to get upset.
Fine, yeah, let's go sit down and work this out. Officers, I suggest you disperse this crowd, perhaps. That's me turning to the militia guys and being like... The militia guys kind of give you a cold stare because, you know, you're an outsider telling them what to do. I stare back. They will not respond, but they will start dispersing the crowd. I leave off the idea that you can't even say, hey, my taxes pay your way. I don't pay taxes. I have swept through this place like a tidal wave. Never mind.
I'm larger and scarier than everything around me, and I intend to use that to my advantage. Broadly, broccoli tree. And yeah, oh, and also just, I don't think I said, the guards are a blue jay and a red cardinal. Oh, they're birds. Yes. Wait, coming in fashionably late. Yes, naturally, naturally. Just saying that we obviously cannot, we can do many things, but we cannot fly. So, you know, if you do spot any clues, come back and let us know. Yeah, again, these guards are like, can't tell us what to do.
Then one of them will fly off. Just beatboxing? Yes, that is what they... Blusterboxing. So, you head in, and Betty has already got, like, six pints prepped. And, you know, this is kind of weak ale, which means that it's not such a problem for morning drinking. And it looks like maybe these two might need a bit of a drink. And, yeah, you sort of sit down in a loose circle around the fire. And, yeah, like, what do you do? You've kind of got them. You can get some information out of them. I thank Betty as we're gathering. That's all right. I've added to your tab. Betty, before you go, so how long have they been coming here secretly? Oh!
Oh, what, Andrews and Mint? Yeah. I don't know. I don't know. It's a secret, to be honest. She says, like, looking at... Yeah, looking at Tamora and Jasper in a sort of, like, hey, no, it's not like... This is what secrets look like, so, you know. I mean, narratively, obviously, these two kids were the two people being conspiratorial in the corner of this very pub the previous night. I don't feel like we've necessarily established that in character. So this is the thing. I think that from context clues... I was going to introduce that. You know, Alex was slightly preempted, but because you can usually tell from, you know, fur colour, like, Jasper is a very, like, remarkable kind of deep, ruddy red.
and the fox was that, and the fox was talking to a white rabbit. Now, I feel a need to justify one thing here, which is only clear to me as the GM, but worth pointing out, which is, Grisop in his time made a series of wild, wild leaps of logic that he then proceeded to immediately state as established facts, regardless of whether they are or not. So to be clear, I'm quite happy to be wrong, but this is me doing a Grisop off, here is a statement of fact, regardless of the actual circumstances. Discuss. Turns out you were correct. Much like I usually was. Who knew it's the optimal way to play?
Yeah, so, look, they just came here for a drink, all right? I don't know anything about any secret tricks or nothing. I thought they were just friends. But yes, no, like, Mint and Andrews were here. And when did they leave? I don't know. Just sometime during the evening. Like you were, I think, playing cards.
Right. I noticed them head out. I did not think it remarkable in any way. So, Mr Jasper, Mr Mora, do tell us what exactly has happened. You have discovered your children are missing. At what point did you discover this? And what was it about it that gave you immediate cause for concern rather than just they were out as it were? Well, I mean, one of the problems is, you know, I mean, it's just a bad influence. A bad influence? Anders is the bad influence. Get over yourselves. I thought you were worried about your kids. What you said, yep. Yes. It's fine.
Just let her run. Yes. I'm agreeing. Oh, it's actually much easier to do the voice when you do the head motions. Oh, yeah. Yeah, OK, fine. Look, they've been hanging around and I've not been particularly happy about it. I know Jasper hasn't been particularly happy about it. And he's like, oh, yeah. But we didn't think they were going to do anything so drastic. We just... I don't know. I mean, I... I don't know. We haven't been planning, like... Mint's been really closed off recently. And us too. You can't really get anything out of the boy.
When did you last see the kids? Yesterday. Daytime. Daytime, right. Mint didn't come home, but I assumed she was just out with friends. But then she didn't come home. She wasn't there in the morning and... Hypothetically, if I was going to elope, where would I go? Elope? Stupid children. I don't know, maybe...
Look, if they were staying in the clearing, we'd know where they were. Somebody would have told us, so probably onto the woods. Tamora, like, at that kind of thing, also looks horrified. Both of them get very scared. Is there a nearby other clearing that they would have hopped off to to perhaps find someone that would officiate any kind of ceremony?
What is the kind of place those kids might hop or scupper off to? I don't know. And then at that point, Betty chimes in and goes, well, you could always try to ruin Grove, couldn't they? I don't know what that is, but that sounds like our thing. That's our thing. I think that's our thing. That's probably our thing. That's got Quest written all over it. Right? And I'm going to take a break there.
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that we can look at. I might probably draw you something. Yeah, it's not too far away. I mean, look, it does sound like the kind of place where if you've heard of it, you'd run to. You know, it's not another clearing, but it's as close as it can be. Yep, sure, just need a direction. Yeah, I bet he will draw you like a really sort of rudimentary map. Your children, you say they did not come home last night. Have they taken their possessions with them? Have they taken supplies for travelling? It is important to know, especially how much. That will give us a guide to how far they were expecting to travel. I didn't do a bloody inventory when I found out my son was missing. I came here. That is completely fair. But if you want to increase our chances of finding them...
as quickly as possible and bringing them home safely. It would be worth going and checking now and coming back to us with that information. Yeah, great plan. You can all go check your things. I can put some clothes on. Zolf can do whatever Zolf wants to do. And while we get that map drawn up, we all come back here. Off we go. Yeah, okay, okay. Fine, fine. Jasper, let's go. And they both kind of hurry out to do what you asked. So while they're gone and Zolf and Griswold are putting clothes on, Chilvar is going to ask...
What was Betty's... Yeah, let's say Betty. So, was there anyone that they were friends with or that you ever saw them confide in or that maybe would regularly join them in their little booth? Someone that they might have told where they would go? No, I don't think so. They were always coming in. But, look, you know what kids are like. They came in. They had their intense, like, really intense conversations. You know, bought a drink or two. You know, by the way, they didn't say, these kids are of age. They can do what they want. I mean, it's not their fault that their parents are like that.
Most people in this clearing approve of the relationship and, for instance, disapprove of the kind of pressure the parents are putting on. Just wondering in case there's anyone that might have secreted them somewhere around the clearing itself. Right, I see what you mean. No, not really. I mean, this is... Quite frankly, I think this is just personal family drama. Right. So they wouldn't be just hiding out at a friend's house to get away from the arguments. I mean, maybe, but...
you know, Tamora and Jasper, they've got a reason about an influence in this town. Right, so even if friends were helping them, they'd try and get away. Yeah, and I think, like, even if their friends were helping them, I don't think those friends' parents would want to piss off, you know, sort of the, one of the best blacksmiths in the clearing and the bank manager. It's not a good look. I see. Yeah, you wouldn't be able to buy anything metal ever again. Yeah, yeah, that wouldn't be a good move in the long run. Not that I'm saying I approve of, you know, what they're up to, sort of nodding out the door, you know, just vaguely towards Tamora and Jasper. Oh, what are they up to?
Oh, I've just been overbearing parents. Oh, right, I see. No, that makes sense. Neither of them seem to be taking their roles very seriously and... I think you might say too seriously. Well, indeed, perhaps that is a better phrasing.
But the important thing is the safety of the children and unprepared. People should not necessarily wander into the woodlands regardless. Yeah, I would not say those kids are probably the best prepared kids around here to do something like this. If we can find them and help them be safe, that will be a good thing, regardless of how it interacts with their parents' wishes. Would you say that they are rather... Spoiled may not be the right word, but not exactly prepared for rough living. Yeah, naive. Useful to... Idealistic. I mean, when I was delivering drinks at the table, I heard the kind of things they were talking about. Mike?
Lots of talk about true love and destiny, all right? So I think, you know, they've got a little bit of a romantic kind of view of the world, which... Oh, dear. I'm not going to say it's wrong, but... But it's wrong. They could get themselves into trouble. Yeah, somebody would be your background way of... Anyway, look, no. You seem like a good sort, so, you know. Oh, yes. I've got to say. Just had my heart broken many times, always looking for someone who might fix it.
I don't know what you... Just always on the lookout. It's not necessarily relevant. Flattered, but no. It occurs to me, Betty, you mentioned you overheard them a little while delivering drinks. These children clearly were attempting to be clandestine, but perhaps not always the best at it. Did they always sit in that booth? Are there any regulars who would have sat... The badger who sat by the fire, do you think he might possibly have overheard?
some of their conversations. Ooh, I don't know, maybe. I mean, he was another, you know, he's not from Roundir, so I don't really know much about him. Another traveller like ourselves. I think at that point, Grizzop, fully dressed, just runs through this scene, doesn't address it, and proceeds to start asking people out on the street if any of them last night saw people, saw the couple, and if they did, what direction? Just, you carry on, but I think that's Grizzop's thing. Okay, sure, yeah, yeah, yeah, fine. Yes, I will elide that scene and you can come back with some info. Yeah, I don't know, he's not from Roundir, but...
I'm just wondering if they might, being relatively naive but will-to-do kids with a dream, have got someone, like maybe another vagabond, paid them to help them escape. Oh. Was he staying here at the inn? Should we go and see if he's still in his room? I mean, he was, yeah. I mean, tell you what, let's go knock. What was his name? Ivan. Let's pick up Zolf on the way and go and knock on. Yeah, I imagine that Zolf's going to stomp out of the door. See if we're walking past him just below. Right, yes, we're doing whatever this is. Right, so Betty walks up to the door, is about to knock, and then notices that the key is in the lock, and she just opens the door, and is like, oh, yeah, it's empty. He's gone, he's checked out, I guess. Right, that's interesting.
Did he pay in advance? Yeah, yeah, like you. No offence, but I don't take credit. No, that's fair enough. That just tells us that he wasn't trying to skip out on a bill. In fact, he may have skipped a prepaid breakfast. Very suspicious. Right, so we reckon that whoever was in here went with the kids. That's...
Wasn't privy to any of the conversation, but that's the context. It seems plausible. Is there any form of tracking move in this game, Ben? I can't see one, so I don't know if there is. But it feels like if we're experienced travellers, we may have ways to pick up on context clues, maybe even scent, or just, you know, trails to potentially follow someone. So I think you're not going to need to make a tracking move because you've been given a map. And with Grizzop going around asking random people...
You end up talking to one of the stallholders in the market who says they did see a rabbit and a fox and a badger leave the clearing late at night. And they thought nothing of it. They thought they were just, you know, like people go in and out all the time. There could be a train caravan. But now you ask. Yeah. And they were heading out. They'll indicate a road. Does that seem in the direction of the Forsaken Grove? Because I've got a start point. I'm curious if it's in the right direction. I mean, you don't know. But when you come back, like Betty's like, yes. OK, cool. Fabulous.
Right, cool. So we've got a start point. I mean, I'll be honest, we don't really need to wait for the parents to come back with that info. We're pretty much good anyway. Also, am I the only one who thought there were sparks flying there? They have a lot in common when you think about it. Interesting. Not relevant. Why don't we wait for the parents to come back in case they can give us, you know, extra clues? I think that if the Badger had not spoken to the kids previously, this may have been quite a sudden thing. They may not have packed. I'm a little worried that he has ulterior motives, and the further they go...
Yeah, exactly, exactly. The quicker that we go, the quicker we find them. Because, I mean, what benefit does it know? We know where they set off, we know which way they're going, and they've got a forager, so it's just go, right? Also, lots of people here know where the Forbidden Grove is. They could probably send a bird to catch us up if there's some extra clue and we're still on the road. Yeah, you'd hook us up, Betty, right? Yeah, yeah, yeah, I can. I mean, people don't really go there. I mean, you know, and it's not like common knowledge, it's just there are benefits to running a pub. People talk, you know, adventurers like you. I guess it must be called Forbidden for a reason. Why is it forbidden? Forsaken. Forsaken Grove. Apologies.
Oh, wait, no, basically, it's just somebody else, like, a group of people. And you get this every so often, and, like, you know that this does happen. But, like, people say, Sodja, I'm going to go make my own community. And, well, you know as well as I do, there's a reason there are only, you know, this many clearings. It's hard to start your own one. Cool, so we should just go then, right? Right, yes. So we can expect a rather tumble-down, abandoned settlement. Yeah, this was, I don't know, like, five generations ago. Like, it's not, I'm not to say it's like a legend or anything. Like, people know it happens. But it's not like, you know, these are proper ruins. Oh, great, that's desperately ominous growth. We know where they're going. We know who they've got with them. We know where they set off from. We know that it's desperately omin
At this point, Tamora and Jasper return. Sympathetic look at Griddle. Looking very worried. Yeah, Jasper's like, yes, some of the food's missing. Not much, but some. It looks like he might have packed a bag. And Tamora's like, yeah, same for us. And she took some of her diary and things, things that she would want to keep with her. Oh, cool, that's a good thing. That means that all of the information points in the same direction, so we are good. That's a good thing. That's good to know. That is very helpful information, and we have other information that we think we can find them.
The chances are very good. Please try not to worry too much. Especially if we leave now. Especially if we leave now. Please find our children. And then Betty's like, I think you two might need a drink. Come over and I'll sort you out. Let's be off. Good stuff.
So you head out following the map that Betty gave you. And yeah, with the direction that Grisop got the map and also like none of you are trackers as such, but you are used to living this life. You all have a certain basic level of skill and it looks like you can pick up on the trail quite easily. It looks like they weren't trying to hide their passage or at least if they were, you know, they're very much not accomplished at it. And yeah, you follow along and it takes you, it's about a four hour walk before you need to turn off of the woodland path. And again, with the woodlands, the roads.
are pretty safe. You know, the dangers, you've got, like, bandits or maybe Marquiset patrols that will try and, like, levy attacks, you know, this kind of stuff, but they're kept pretty well maintained. I am checking the rules, Ben, and I noticed that there are two travel moves that we can make as a group specifically to represent travelling. Would you like us to use either of those moves in this situation? It is a good question. The answer is no, because I'm doing the whole one-shot, like, you're mildly on rails. But yes, it's a good point.
The travel moves are very good and are a good engine to insert, like, sort of random encounters and happenings to make it feel a little bit like an actual living world instead of just a, you know, point of interest to point of interest. However, we're doing a one-shot, so it's point of interest to point of interest. Absolutely. Very sensible. And as you are about to turn off, you notice there is a little hut, which is very much like, and I forget the names of them, but the ones they have in the Scottish Highlands, which are sort of like those communal, like, respite refuge huts. Yeah, yeah, yeah. They have a special name, and I can't remember, but it's like a community thing where you're expected to look after it.
Bothy, yes. There's sort of a bothy just on the corner. For example, if you get caught at night or in a storm, there is a bolt hole for people to safely sleep. And it's the expectation that everybody is responsible for making sure they leave it as they found it. And just outside, you see a badger smoking a nice pipe. Is he the same badger? Yeah, is it Ivan? It is Ivan. All right, Zolf's going to stride up and be like, right, where are the kids? And a good afternoon to you too. Watch out, don't care where are kids. What they said.
Well, look, I was paid to a job. I'm keeping the job. They bought my secrecy. Sorry. Look, here's the deal, right? We don't actually care if they're going to get married or not. You know what? Free love. OK, fine. All I care about is making sure that they're safe while they do that. So if you just tell us where they are, great. We can just make sure nothing happens and everyone's happy. Ivan stands up. Not like, I'm going to fight you, but he was reclining with the pipe, so he now stands up, still smoking the pipe, and says, that's great, but I don't care.
Because I've got a code, and if somebody pays me for something, I stick to it. All right, then. How much would it cost to pay you to tell us, then, if you're so big on money? No, that's not how it works. It's not about money. Okay, then which is your favourite knee? I beg your pardon? What's your favourite knee? He's about to shoo it off, so... He puts his hand on his weapon. Look, I know there's four of you and one of me.
but is this really worth it? I go down without a fight and I'll take at least one of you with me. So maybe we can have a discussion, like civilised people, instead of immediately resorting to violence. There is no need for violence. We are all in the same situation here. You were hired to do a job, we have been hired to do a job, and both of those jobs should necessarily require the safety of these two people. So, I think at this point, one of you is going to be persuading an NPC. I will also say, bear in mind, you have the help or interfere.
And, you know, if you want to help, you can mark, oh, after rolling, great. So somebody make that roll, and then after rolling, people can mark exhaustion if they want to add plus one to that roll. So Chava has plus one charm. Who else? Same. Right, cool. Weirdly, Zolf also has plus one charm. Let's do this, wait.
I think what Grisop's mostly ready to do is shoot some knees off. I'm not entirely sure that I'm going to be either trying to persuade or help. I'll defer to Ben if he thinks I initiated this. This is very much a group action. I'm not lumbering it on the person who opened their mouth first, because that's a bit unfair if you're playing Grisop, right? Because it's always you. I think at this point, Chelvar is going to step slightly in front of Grisop, put a furry and quaffed hand on Grisop's tiny, angry shoulder, and just gently push back. But in the way we've worked before, it's a good cock vibe. Grisop's not an idiot. Grisop knows what's happening here, which is, let me do the talking so you can focus on the knees. Hey, so really,
What this is about is making sure that these kids are safe. Did they pay you to keep them safe? That's all we really want to start with. I don't want my little friend to do anything stupid, but it's hard to guarantee. I'm very stupid and angry. At this point, I think, make the charm roll and we'll see how he takes this. I've got a nine plus one is ten. Cheeky. Yeah, Ivan, as you start, he's kind of bristling. And then as you continue, I think specifically when you mentioned the kid's safety, he kind of is like...
Fine. All right. Yeah, sure. They might be doing something stupid. These kind of kids, you know, they'll say they want something, but they don't know always what they really want.
So you're going to help us, or...? Yeah, fine. I don't want a couple of dead kids on my conscience. Fine. Yeah, yeah. I'll help you. We're not going to drag them kicking and streaming back to their parents. We will talk with them. If necessary, we will take a report of them back to the parents. But fundamentally, they are able to make their own decisions, even if those are slightly foolish decisions. But it's important to all five of us that they are safe. Yeah. All right. Yeah, no, no. You lot have your job. I've got mine. Tell you what, I'll lead you to where I dropped them off. I can't guarantee they're there, but, you know.
That's great. We appreciate that. Yes. If they paid you to take care of them, then this is just an extension of that job. Unless they paid you to, like, take care of them, in which case we're going to have a problem. Wait, you're saying they paid me to take care of them? Don't listen too much to what he says. It's just confusing at the best of times. And away we go! Grisop starts running in the direction he thinks. All right, yeah, he taps the bowl of his pipe out on the heel of his boot, stows it, and then carries on in the direction that Grisop is going. Oh, yes, got it right, yes. I mean, you literally have a map. Don't ever think that's about Grisop.
Pick an arbitrary decision and just commit. Chrisop is canonically a ranger. Oh, yeah! A ranger paladin. As rangery a paladin as I can get. A ranged paladin. Yes. It's a palinger. Yeah. I can't remember what the subtype is called. There is a name for it. Anyway, whatever. Shooty. Shooty McGodlubber. Yeah, shooty paladin. Shooty McGodlubber. There it is. Yeah, and you carry on.
He leads you into the deep woodlands, eventually quite quickly catching up with Grizzop, because obviously you go off and then you're like, OK, now I don't know where I'm going. You've got to pick your way through, whereas he just knows where he's going. It's fine. I was just scouting. I was just scouting. I was just scouting. Yeah, yeah, yeah, of course. And he leads you along what appears to be an extraordinarily... There was a trail here, and it's very overgrown. But if you look hard, you can start to notice the grass is just a little thinner, the trees are just a little more spaced out. It's obviously somebody... Some people have found a natural track and taken it somewhere. And he leads you through. And it is spring in the woodlands. It is quite beautiful. There are fields of bluebells. You can hear...
birdsong of the non-sentient variety because you know this woodland also still has an ecosystem uh that is independent of you know the anthropomorphic animals that live here and yeah you you carry on and eventually after about an hour and a half of kind of slowish trekking he leads you to like a couple of rocks which have been set up appearance like seemingly as a sort of like gate or fence posts and then you see uh completely overgrown a set of like old buildings mainly wooden huts you've got some of them that have trees like punching all the way through them one of them appears to be burned down somehow but there are no signs of life and um ivan says Yeah, I left him right there. And as you all look over to where he's pointing, you can see a section of very, very disturbed ground with a splatter of blood. And I'm going to end the episode there. Oh, dear. There you go. Dear, oh, dear, oh, dear. Oh, no, no, no, no. I'm going to assume zebra, not horses, some kind of enormous world-changing creature has attacked. That's the only logical conclusion.
Okay. Yeah, we're going to be attacked by giant gut vultures. Oh, you know what this is? It's just a scaled-down sequel to Ben's Monster of the Week. It's dragons all the way down. Yeah, there's a knucker. There's a knucker living in a well. Anyway, everyone, bye! Bye!
Why am I... That was a weird hybrid of Chelvar and Sel. Selvar. Oh, I would really like to talk to you about the details of these artefacts. Ooh, what? They're mine now. Where the kids are and none of my... No, that's Zolf again. I'm Zolf then. I can't help it. I'm going to West Country. I'm not doing very well at it, but I am Zolf. Hey, you're smashing it. You've managed to get as much character in like two words per hour. Zolf is smashing it right now. I would be annoyed, but it's true.