| Neitherworld (Campaign 2 - Episode 116) |
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| Information | |
| Release Date: | October 21, 2024 |
| Recording Date: | October 18, 2024 |
| Episode Length: | 1:16:25 |
| Cast & Characters | |
| Michael DiMauro: | Dungeon Master |
| Tim Lanning: | T'Chuck |
| Jennifer Cheek: | Selene von Esper |
| Nika Howard: | R'Oarc |
| Guide | |
| Previous Episode: | Next Episode: |
| Do Not Say His Name | Ignorance is Terrifying |
My good friend Screech does a big whoopsie and gets sucked into a damn mirror world, or something like that. Honestly, there were a lot of rules thrown our way so we couldn’t really keep up but I feel like we will eventually figure it out.
Story[]
Long Story[]
So, The Jokester is still hanging around. He's a little stinker, but he does say that he's going to tell them how he got himself here. But, before he does, Screech Echo (another little stinker) does something bad. He takes the shard of that mirror that they got in the last episode, and taps on it. This immediately sucks him into the mirror shard! The shard falls to the ground, but doesn't break. Screech is gone! Also gone is the Jokester, who, I guess, took the opportunity to peace the fuck out.
But, someone who is there is Big Bo. Remember him. He wasn't mentioned last episode, but he's been around the whole time. He asks who the Jokester is. This is interesting, because technically, Bo should have met the Jokester. Let's rewind. When Bo was first introduced, it was established that he'd been traveling with the circus for "a few weeks" before the party joined. Rewinding even further, when the party first arrived at the circus, it was in a shambles, due to the recent arrival of The Jokester. So there was an indefinite period of time when Bo and the Jokester were both working at the circus at the same time. Now, to be fair, Bo was under the effects of a mind altering spell during that time, and it sounds like he doesn't remember anything that happened. So, he did probably meet the Jokester, but just doesn't remember it. Just thought was neat.
Anyway, the Jokester's just the Jokester. No need to worry about him right now. Their main concern has got to be Screech. He's trapped in the mirror! Selene uses her Mage Hand to wrap the mirror up in cloth, and inspects it. Screech is, in fact, trapped inside. He appears to be banging on the glass, but can't get out. As the party watches, a couple of those glass figures appear behind Screech, and appear to question him. They make him turn out his pockets, but don't find what they are looking for. Screech appears to be mouthing the word "Book" to them. So, is that what they are looking for. Not finding it, the guards drag Screech away, and throw him in a cell! Uh oh!
Fortunately, the party still has the copy of The Handbook for the Recently Deceased that they found, so they flip through the pages in an attempt to find some answers. Inside, T'Chuck learns that there is a place called "The Neitherworld", which must be where Screech is. According to the book, whenever you travel through the Neitherworld, you must have your copy of the book with you at all times. Which seems a little self-aggrandizing, if you ask me. Failure to comply with this rule will result in a prison sentence of 100 years! Unless, of course, someone is able to fill out the necessary "punishment mitigation paperwork". Alright, so it sounds like we need to jump into the mirror dimension and rescue Screech. But how?
That's where R'Oarc comes in. Apparently, she took a night class on Necromancy back during her festival days. I guess one of the festivals hosted the class? It's unclear. But, she and Stephanie would hang out there together. Stephanie's hand is still with R'Oarc (so it's not Wally Bonebraids' hand), but according to R'Oarc, the rest of her body is still back with Ratma Ritmo back in "Deephome". I'm assuming she means Mineford, since Deephome is where Aludra and Jaela lived, and haven't been mentioned in this campaign, but whatever. Also, Ratma's not even back in Mineford. She was on her way to meet the party in Brookwillow, but got delayed. The party was going to wait for her, but seem to have gotten distracted with this whole graveyard thing. Sounds like the circus is now on their way to meet the party in Farhold, so they won't be going back to Brookwillow? I don't know, now's not the time.
Oh, yeah! Anyway, R'Oarc knows that, to enter the Neitherworld safely, they need to draw a door on the wall. She does just that after finding some conveniently placed chalk. She makes a circular Hobbit-style door, which opens with a ghostly shimmer. And, stepping through it, the party enters the Neitherworld.
It's the waiting room from Beetlejuice, guys. No two ways about it. You've seen it, you know what it looks like. There's some business where R'Oarc stabs herself in the gut, but only takes 3 damage, because it's a game and the rules are made up. T'Chuck tries to stop her, but fails. This does prove their not dead, which wasn't something they were really that concerned about. Oh well. When they get to the receptionist's desk, and ask to see Screech, they are told that there is a way to rescue their friend. Since he's not actually dead, he shouldn't really be in there anyway. But, to get him out, they will need to fill out the appropriate paperwork. There are three forms that they will need stamped, in order to rescue Screech: P-42 "Exemption", Form F-99 "Appeal", and Form B-14 "Reassignment". Unfortunately, she is unable to just give them the forms; the party will need to go and get them from the respected offices. Fortunately, those offices are all pretty close by. So, off they go.
First up is the Office of Exemptions. Upon entering, the party finds, no bureaucratic office workers, but instead, a bunch of papers floating through the air. They swirl around above them, and soon form the shape of letters, words, sentences. They say: "To retrieve form P-42, answer the following security question." It then asks them a series of questions, which Selene is able to figure out the answers to all three of them:
- Question: "I am not seen, yet all will face. I come to every time and place. I end all journeys, yet start anew. I bring the silence that's long overdue. What am I?"
- Answer: "Death"
- Question: "I am always hungry, I must always be fed. The finger I touch will soon turn red. What am I?"
- Answer: "Fire"
- Question: "I hold your gaze, but have no eyes. I reflect your fate in many sides. You trust me to show what's true, though my face changes with every view. What am I?"
- Answer: "Dice"
With those questions answered (actually, they only needed to answer the first one; the other two were just for fun), the P-42 "Exemption" form floats down from the ceiling above them, already stamped and approved. Yay!
Next up is the Office of Appeals. This room is full of random objects, scattered and discarded all along the floor. Anything they could ever think of can be found somewhere in this room. And right in the center, towering above it all, is a giant, enchanted scale, wobbling back and forth, but empty. Shimmering words are written above the scale: "Achieve work-life balance." The party reasons that they will need to find an object on the ground that represents work, and another object of equal weight that represents life. T'Chuck finds a dildo, which (obviously) represents life, and a giant stapler, one that's super complex and weird looking, representing work. The dildo is, presumably, normal shaped. However, when he places them both on the scales, they tip in the direction of the stapler.
Alright, time to keep looking around. Maybe if they can get two objects that can be emptied, or poured out in some way, they can Indiana Jones-style lighten the objects. To that end, R'Oarc picks up a sack of flour, representing life, and Selene finds a large ink pot, representing work. When those items are placed on the scales, the ink pot is revealed to be heaver. But, they somehow seem to know that it's heavier in exactly the same way that the sack of flour AND the dildo would be, if they were placed together. So, they throw the dildo up there next to the flour, and... ba-da-bing! It balances out! With their work and lives balanced, the party are rewarded with their second stamped form, the F-99 form!
Off they go to the final office, the Reassignment Chamber. This time, they are actually greeted by someone, another ghostly figure. His desk is cluttered, and has a name-plate on it reading, "Director of Processing". The Director asks them why they are here, since they're not dead. They explain the whole thing. While this is all highly irregular, the Director does agree to grant them the form they need, but only IF they can prove their relationship to the incarcerated Screech. To do this, they must answer 3 questions about Screech. These questions are a little tricky, but the party is able to come up with the answers after some head scratching:
- Question: "What is the last lie Screech Echo told?"
- Answer: "Whatever it was that was the last thing that came out of his mouth." (This is technically correct; the last thing he said was something along the lines of "I'm only going to borrow that mirror shard for a second. I won't tap on it, I swear.")
- Question: "What is the lie your friend tells themselves most often?"
- Answer: "That he's rich."
- Question: "What is the last word your friend would say before their death?"
- Answer: It's either "Oh, shit!" or "Do you want a dollar?" They decide to combine the two into one answer, which ends up being correct: "Oh, shit! Do you want a dollar?"
The Director isn't happy with this whole situation, but those answers are satisfactory. Mostly, he just wants these not-dead people out of his office. He refers to them as "early", since they should only be here when their dead. I think it's accidentally hilarious to refer to living people as "early", since we refer to dead people as "the late so-and-so." Good goof, Michael. Anyway, the Director hands them form B-14, all stamped and ready to go.
And suddenly, with all three forms in hand, the party is instantly transported back to the attick in the graveyard, and Screech Echo is there with them! Hurray! They also still have the mirror shard.
Short[]
Screech slurps himself into a scary mirror dimension called "The Neitherworld", and the Jokester also disappears. The party travels into the Neitherworld to rescue him, and have to fill out a series of forms to get him out of mirror jail. This involves answering some riddles, weighing out a nice work-life balance, and proving to a ghost dude that they do, in fact, know Screech. Once they do, everyone appears back in the attic, Screech included.
Trivia[]
- T'Chuck forbids R'Oarc from dating Big Bo on the account that he is too old for her. This once again displays T'Chuck intense lack of psychological understanding of rebellious "teenage" daughters. Forbidding them from dating someone only makes them want to date them even more. Fortunately, R'Oarc only has eyes for the Jokester. Wait, is that fortunate?
- Also, Bo states that he's married, but then adds "maybe". So, he may or may not be married.
- R'Oarc also responds that she, too, was married once, even though SHE AND FIZZLEBANG GLIMMERSTONE WERE NEVER MARRIED, ONLY ENGAGED.
- Also, Bo states that he's married, but then adds "maybe". So, he may or may not be married.
- In the last episode, Selene was supposed to have the mirror shard. However, due to DM shenanigans, Screech had it this episode. Getting real Blooddrinker vibes from this.
- Since R'Oarc left Stephanie, she is no longer animated, she's just a skeleton again.
- Page 432 of The Handbook for the Recently Deceased tells them that they will be in big trouble if they try to use Invisibility in the Neitherworld.
- The Director of Processing makes a joke that Screech's middle name is "Leonard". This isn't true, but I really wish it were, because it's hilarious.
- Twitter is currently in the process of undergoing a long and painful death, so the party uses this as an opportunity to plug their Bluesky handles. You can follow everyone here:
- The Podcast: @dndpodcast
- Michael DiMauro: @dimauro
- Tim Lanning: @timlanning
- Jennifer Cheek: @jennifercheek
- Nika Howard: @nikahoward
- Mike Bachmann: I don't think he has a Bluesky account?
- Editor David: @spudcam
- (shameless self-promotion) Wiki Editor Mister Red: @misterredplays
In This Episode...[]
Cast and Player Characters[]
- Michael DiMauro - Dungeon Master
- Tim Lanning - T'Chuck
- Jennifer Cheek - Selene von Esper
- Nika Howard - R'Oarc
Non-Player Characters[]
- The Jokester
- Big Bo
- An undead(?) receptionist
- The Director of Processing
Locations[]
- Drunkeros
- Farhold
- Grimwatch Hollow
- Farhold
- The Neitherworld
Inventory[]
| T'Chuck | Selene von Esper | R'Oarc | Screech Echo | General Inventory | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Quest Board[]
- [Active] - Keep The Emperor safe
- [Active] - Find out who ordered the hit on the Emperor
- [Active] - Meet "The Professor" in Grimwatch Hollow, a graveyard outside of Farhold
- [Active] - Find out who ordered the hit on the Emperor
- [On-Hold] - Save Selene's family!
- [Abandoned?] - Go to Brunnell
- [Abandoned?] - Wait for Ratma Ritmo to arrive in Brookwillow
- [On-Hold] - Recruit the help of Hortentia Calamore
- [On-Hold] - Travel to Vhur'endal
- [On-Hold] - Recruit the help of House Bartell
- [On-Hold] - Travel to Anchordowns
- [Abandoned?] - Go to Brunnell
- [On-Hold] - Find a cure for Thaldin Emberbrew
- [On-Hold] - Go to the nearby Drow city, probably Vhur'endal
- [On-hold] - Investigate "Bill, the Necromancer", in the far off city by the coast
- [On-hold] - Take the disembodied lips to the oceanfront, for a burial at sea
Quotes[]
- "I'm married, maybe..." ~ Big Bo
- "Stop giving d8's for useless things; we're gonna fucking die! I know it doesn't matter-- AND, YOU CAN'T DO IT AS A REACTION. WE'RE GONNA DIE!!!" ~ Tim Lanning
- "Imagine The Jokester is your son-in-law." ~ Jennifer Cheek
- "Oi! Me dildo's 8 stone, mate!" ~ Tim Lanning
- "I don't wanna Intimidate him... But I will..." ~ Nika Howard
Rolls[]
- Everyone rolls Perception while watching Screech get intercepted by the mirror guards
- Selene - 10
- T'Chuck - 12
- R'Oarc - 14
- They notice him mouthing the word "Book".
- They each roll something to try to check out the book in their own, unique ways
- T'Chuck, rolling Perception - 15
- He finds a chapter about visiting the Neitherworld.
- Selene, rolling something - Nat 1
- She trips and falls, accidentally rips out one of the pages and eats it, and the farts, and rolls herself into a ball of shame.
- R'Oarc, rolling Investigation to see which pages are most worn - 3
- She doesn't find anything.
- T'Chuck, rolling Perception - 15
- Michael rolls a d12 to see how far off R'Oarc's doorknob is from the center - 1
- I guess it's 1 inch off the center.
- Michael instead rolls a d100 to, again, see how far off R'Oarc's doorknob is from the center - 98
- Now it's 98% of the way to the right. I don't know.
- T'Chuck rolls something to stop R'Oarc from stabbing herself - 14
- Against R'Oarc's Dex, because it's kind of a grapple - 18
- R'Oarc wins. She stabs herself for 3 damage.
- Against R'Oarc's Dex, because it's kind of a grapple - 18
- T'Chuck rolls Perception to find a work item that weighs as much as a dildo - 21
- He finds a complicated looking stapler.
- T'Chuck rolls to see how much the dildo and the stapler weigh
- Dildo - 8
- Stapler - 14
- The stapler is heavier.
- R'Oarc and Selene roll to see how much their sack of flour and ink pot weigh, respectively
- Sack of flour - 6
- Ink pot - 13
- The ink pot is heavier.