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Mariah and Cleve consider their next steps in preventing a repeat of the Unity shipwreck disaster. Scene 27 Scene 28 Scene 29 Scene 30 GM Note The nature of wildlife in this episode is directly inspired by real scientific research. Barramundi are a type of coastal fish that can live in both saltwater and freshwater. But as they're only capable of breeding in saltwater, their expansion on Chiron is thankfully limited. Gale's natural harpoon is also a real feature of a jellyfish-like creature on Earth. Researchers are actively studying how this works in hopes of improving drug injection in humans. (Nematocyst research: https://repository.arizona.edu/handle/10150/677497) Our music is from Purple Planet Music. Visit them at purple-planet.com. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
A council of mages meets at the Estbryn encampment. Scene 3 Scene 4 Our character art by Del Borovic and the map we refer to (by me!) can be found here. Our music is sampled from Return to Wesnoth by Matthias Westlund (aka West), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, part of The Battle for Wesnoth Project. Visit them at wesnoth.org. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Cleve and Mariah see to everyday business at the Headquarters Dome. Scene 23 Scene 24 Scene 25 Scene 26 Our music is from Purple Planet Music. Visit them at purple-planet.com. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Tric, Heppa, and Kachen theorize about what Thrandolil will do with his magical contraption and Anador's circlet. Scene 1 Scene 2 This arc contains references to the Battle for Wesnoth campaigns Eastern Invasion and The Hammer of Thursagan. It uses the material mechanic from the I Declare supplement, available from the Genesys Foundry on DriveThruRPG. Our character art by Del Borovic and the map we refer to (by me!) can be found here. Our music is sampled from Return to Wesnoth by Matthias Westlund (aka West), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, part of The Battle for Wesnoth Project. Visit them at wesnoth.org. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Cleve helps Nila rescue her exiled brother. Scene 21 Scene 22 Our music is from Purple Planet Music. Visit them at purple-planet.com. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Elves, humans, and saurians recover from the assault. Scene 8 Scene 9 Scene 10 GM Notes I originally thought the campaign was going to end with a trek across the Bitter Swamp to Mal-Ravanal's fortress for a final showdown there. I was going to ambush the players with drakes along the route. However, as events in our story developed organically, that ending grew less and less likely. I still wanted to bring in drakes, though, and having them attack the saurian allies was the perfect opportunity. I don't feel like I managed to make my drakes quite as intimidating as the ones in the Battle for Wesnoth video game, but I was still glad to give Drake Gliders and Clashers some air time. You also got to hear Tric spout lore about Flamehearts. As for other units from the video game, this combat let us see the pinnacle of saurian fighting prowess, the Flanker, as well as a return of our old friend, the Mudcrawler. Our character art by Del Borovic and the map we refer to (by me!) can be found here. Our music is sampled from Return to Wesnoth by Matthias Westlund (aka West), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, part of The Battle for Wesnoth Project. Visit them at wesnoth.org. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Marina collects more data on chironic connections to resonance energy. Scene 18 Scene 19 Scene 20 Our music is from Purple Planet Music. Visit them at purple-planet.com. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Sprizz and her drake allies attack Hezzis and Bzzazz's encampment. Scene 5 Scene 6 Scene 7 Our character art by Del Borovic and the map we refer to (by me!) can be found here. Our music is sampled from Return to Wesnoth by Matthias Westlund (aka West), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, part of The Battle for Wesnoth Project. Visit them at wesnoth.org. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Scarmouth the siege worm deals with some pests. Scene 17 Our music is from Purple Planet Music. Visit them at purple-planet.com. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Tric and Heppa experience daily saurian life up close and learn more about the society. Scene 1 Scene 2 Scene 3 Scene 4 GM Notes Of all the peoples that Tric and Heppa interacted with during this campaign, the saurians have always felt to me like the most foreign. They have very short lives, they have a very rigid gender divide in their societal roles, and they are not mammalian. Those are all details drawn from their entry in the Battle for Wesnoth wiki. I decided to lean further into all that in this arc, inspired by the various fish, reptiles, and amphibians that can change sex (ref: https://www.treehugger.com/animals-can-change-their-sex-4869361). Although Salras is not transgender in the same sense as a human in the real world might be, I did talk with the transgender player in our group prior to introducing this topic, just to make sure I handled it in a way we would all be comfortable with. This arc contains spoilers for the Battle for Wesnoth campaigns Eastern Invasion and the Legend of Wesmere, as well as references to Ashen Hearts, a User-Made Content campaign. Our character art by Del Borovic and the map we refer to (by me!) can be found here. Our music is sampled from Return to Wesnoth by Matthias Westlund (aka West), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, part of The Battle for Wesnoth Project. Visit them at wesnoth.org. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Cleve and Mariah head back to the domes. Scene 14 Scene 15 Scene 16 Our music is from Purple Planet Music. Visit them at purple-planet.com. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
With the chase over, a battle ensues in the swamps. Scene 13 Scene 14 Our character art by Del Borovic and the map we refer to (by me!) can be found here. Our music is sampled from Return to Wesnoth by Matthias Westlund (aka West), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, part of The Battle for Wesnoth Project. Visit them at wesnoth.org. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Checkerboard gets settled into her new life at Data Haven. Scene 9 Scene 10 Scene 11 Scene 12 Scene 13 Our music is from Purple Planet Music. Visit them at purple-planet.com. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Wolf-mounted goblins pursue Tric, Heppa, and their loaded cart of recovered people and items. Scene 11 Scene 12 Note: This episode uses our Chase rules. Find them here. Our character art by Del Borovic and the map we refer to (by me!) can be found here. Our music is sampled from Return to Wesnoth by Matthias Westlund (aka West), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, part of The Battle for Wesnoth Project. Visit them at wesnoth.org. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
While Datajack Prime attends to systems at Data Haven, Mariah helps Takuto reach out to Arx. Scene 5 Scene 6 Scene 7 Scene 8 Our music is from Purple Planet Music. Visit them at purple-planet.com. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Kachen pursues one additional goal at the orc encampment. Scene 7 Scene 8 Scene 9 Scene 10 Our character art by Del Borovic and the map we refer to (by me!) can be found here. Our music is sampled from Return to Wesnoth by Matthias Westlund (aka West), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, part of The Battle for Wesnoth Project. Visit them at wesnoth.org. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Mariah and Cleve instigate a few more changes in the Morgan domes before heading back to Data Haven. Scene 1 Scene 2 Scene 3 Scene 4 Our music is from Purple Planet Music. Visit them at purple-planet.com. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
While Tric and Heledd barter for Anador's circlet, Heppa and Kachen search for the missing journals. Scene 5 Scene 6 GM Notes Mainline orcs in the Battle for Wesnoth video game don't have any magic. For Gugdish, I once again took my inspiration from the expanded units featured in the User-Made Content campaign A War of Life and Death, which includes the Orcish Conjurer. Some of the other orc units that inspired me were the Orcish Assassin and the Orcish Warlord. We'll see other units from the video game as this arc continues, including Goblin Pillagers, a Wraith, and a new unit for our characters, the Nightgaunt. Our character art by Del Borovic and the map we refer to (by me!) can be found here. Our music is sampled from Return to Wesnoth by Matthias Westlund (aka West), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, part of The Battle for Wesnoth Project. Visit them at wesnoth.org. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Peace is made between Morgan Industries, the Stepdaughters of Chiron, and Data Haven. Scene 30 Scene 31 Scene 32 Our music is from Purple Planet Music. Visit them at purple-planet.com. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Heledd's carefully crafted plan gets the team within reach of their targets. Scene 1 Scene 2 Scene 3 Scene 4 GM Notes The Battle for Wesnoth video game has a take on orcs and goblins that I haven't seen anywhere else. They're the same species, as are half-orcs. The different designators arise from the physical capabilities of the individuals. Orcs are the strongest, half-orcs are less muscular, and goblins are considered runts. This then sets their social standing. This doesn't come up much in any of the mainline campaigns, but it's included in the write-up on the official wiki, and I used it to inform how I portrayed those characters. This arc contains references to the Battle for Wesnoth campaign Eastern Invasion. Our character art by Del Borovic and the map we refer to (by me!) can be found here. Our music is sampled from Return to Wesnoth by Matthias Westlund (aka West), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, part of The Battle for Wesnoth Project. Visit them at wesnoth.org. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Morgan Industries' new board of directors convenes for the first time. Scene 26 Scene 27 Scene 28 Scene 29 Our music is from Purple Planet Music. Visit them at purple-planet.com. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Each in their own way, Tric and Heppa seek to improve Kachen's situation. Scene 16 Scene 17 Scene 18 Scene 19 Our character art by Del Borovic and the map we refer to (by me!) can be found here. Our music is sampled from Return to Wesnoth by Matthias Westlund (aka West), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, part of The Battle for Wesnoth Project. Visit them at wesnoth.org. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
With a surprise election underway, the domes of Morgan Industries are abuzz with excitement. Scene 20 Scene 21 Scene 22 Scene 23 Scene 24 Scene 25 Our music is from Purple Planet Music. Visit them at purple-planet.com. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Heppa and Tric enjoy a discussion of magic theory with Cwuml, a silver mage. Scene 13 Scene 14 Scene 15 GM Notes Tric's story about using symbols to teleport between established locations was inspired by the teleportation system in the video game, Betrayal at Krondor. I've never played it myself, but Tric's player did when she was younger. Our character art by Del Borovic and the map we refer to (by me!) can be found here. Our music is sampled from Return to Wesnoth by Matthias Westlund (aka West), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, part of The Battle for Wesnoth Project. Visit them at wesnoth.org. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
With elections underway, Mariah and Cleve each use their own unique skill sets to support Fritz. Scene 16 Scene 17 Scene 18 Scene 19 Our music is from Purple Planet Music. Visit them at purple-planet.com. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
While Heppa sees to one more patient, Tric gains one more quest. Scene 11 Scene 12 GM Notes Lots of units from the Battle for Wesnoth video game are going to come out in this epic battle, as I'm sure you can imagine. We had a Goblin Pillager and an Orcish Crossbowman menacing Heledd in her Rhaessa disguise, and we referred to Tric not being Dunefolk enough to be a Horse Archer. Endathalas was chewed on by a Ghast, and Tric encouraged him to be an Elvish Rider, which is the upgrade of the Elvish Scout. And of course, there are the Chocobones, which I always find a real challenge in the video game, as well as Terwaen's promotion from Knight to Paladin. We also finally get our first Silver Mage! Our character art by Del Borovic and the map we refer to (by me!) can be found here. Our music is sampled from Return to Wesnoth by Matthias Westlund (aka West), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, part of The Battle for Wesnoth Project. Visit them at wesnoth.org. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Mariah and Cleve meet with Nwabudike Morgan, CEO of Morgan Industries and chair of the board. Scene 13 Scene 14 Scene 15 Our music is from Purple Planet Music. Visit them at purple-planet.com. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Terwaen secures medical treatment for Tric and Heppa, who in turn secure her a promotion. Scene 9 Scene 10 Our character art by Del Borovic and the map we refer to (by me!) can be found here. Our music is sampled from Return to Wesnoth by Matthias Westlund (aka West), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, part of The Battle for Wesnoth Project. Visit them at wesnoth.org. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Cleve and Mariah try to convince Xiao to delay the blockade. Scene 9 Scene 10 Scene 11 Scene 12 Note: A pretty powerful monsoon rolled through during this part of the play session. Please bear with us as we incorporate it into the story. I've cleaned it out of the audio as best I can, but there's only so much one can do against the power of nature. Our music is from Purple Planet Music. Visit them at purple-planet.com. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Vicious skeletal cavalry threaten Tric's carefully selected team. Scene 7 Scene 8 Our character art by Del Borovic and the map we refer to (by me!) can be found here. Our music is sampled from Return to Wesnoth by Matthias Westlund (aka West), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, part of The Battle for Wesnoth Project. Visit them at wesnoth.org. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Cleve and Mariah get more support for Fritz in the upcoming election. Scene 5 Scene 6 Scene 7 Scene 8 Our music is from Purple Planet Music. Visit them at purple-planet.com. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Tric's crack team braves the dangers of the swamps. Scene 4 Scene 5 Scene 6 Our character art by Del Borovic and the map we refer to (by me!) can be found here. Our music is sampled from Return to Wesnoth by Matthias Westlund (aka West), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, part of The Battle for Wesnoth Project. Visit them at wesnoth.org. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
The groundwork is laid for a Morgan Industries reorg. Scene 3 Scene 4 Our music is from Purple Planet Music. Visit them at purple-planet.com. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Tric leads his special scouting task force around the edge of the battlefield. Scene 1 Scene 2 Scene 3 GM Notes This episode makes reference to birds that carry and drop burning sticks. This isn't something I made up. If you're interested in learning more about this tool usage by some Australian birds, I've linked an article here: https://altoona.psu.edu/feature/researching-firehawks. This arc contains spoilers for the Battle for Wesnoth campaign Eastern Invasion, Delfador's Memoirs, and The South Guard. Our character art by Del Borovic and the map we refer to (by me!) can be found here. Our music is sampled from Return to Wesnoth by Matthias Westlund (aka West), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, part of The Battle for Wesnoth Project. Visit them at wesnoth.org. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Mariah and Fritz meet with Leyland Campos to pitch changes to the Morgan Industries board of directors. Scene 1 Scene 2 Our music is from Purple Planet Music. Visit them at purple-planet.com. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Dicey Stories is going on a mid-winter hiatus. New episodes resume at the start of February.
Tric's contingency plans regarding Thrandolil do not go over well with Heppa. Scene 9 Scene 10 Scene 11 Scene 12 Our character art by Del Borovic and the map we refer to (by me!) can be found here. Our music is sampled from Return to Wesnoth by Matthias Westlund (aka West), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, part of The Battle for Wesnoth Project. Visit them at wesnoth.org. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Cleve and Louisa race against the clock to rescue Snacker before he gives Fritz up to the authorities. Scene 19 Scene 20 Our music is from Purple Planet Music. Visit them at purple-planet.com. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
House Thrandolil hosts a large family dinner, much to Penna's displeasure. Scene 6 Scene 7 Scene 8 Our character art by Del Borovic and the map we refer to (by me!) can be found here. Our music is sampled from Return to Wesnoth by Matthias Westlund (aka West), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, part of The Battle for Wesnoth Project. Visit them at wesnoth.org. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Louisa brings news of a new threat. Scene 16 Scene 17 Scene 18 Our music is from Purple Planet Music. Visit them at purple-planet.com. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Tric welcomes his sister Terwaen to Estbryn Forest while Heppa brings Alric in for his first visit. Scene 1 Scene 2 Scene 3 Scene 4 Scene 5 GM Notes I got the new alcoholic drink in this episode, Joli Rouge, from a song of that name by the Dreadnoughts. It's got a really fun video that think you should check out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yeh1S_kl8YI. This arc contains spoilers for the Battle for Wesnoth campaigns Eastern Invasion and South Guard. Our character art by Del Borovic and the map we refer to (by me!) can be found here. Our music is sampled from Return to Wesnoth by Matthias Westlund (aka West), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, part of The Battle for Wesnoth Project. Visit them at wesnoth.org. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Mariah and Cleve meet with Shu-Fen about unseating Nwabudike Morgan. Scene 9 Scene 10 Scene 11 Scene 12 Scene 13 Scene 14 Scene 15 GM Note Coming out to someone you care about is rarely easy. Mariah and Fritz each take a risk here in being open, and fortunately it works out for them. Scene 14 of this arc hits close to home for several of us at Dicey Stories. If someone comes out to you, please believe them and try to be supportive. Thank you. Our music is from Purple Planet Music. Visit them at purple-planet.com. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Tric and Heppa pay the dwarves of Untdunben another visit. Scene 13 Scene 14 Scene 15 Scene 16 GM Notes There are no trains in the Battle for Wesnoth video game, at least not any of the campaigns I've played. So why do these dwarves have a train? Well, while contemplating this rematch with the dwarves of Untdunben, I rolled on the Mythic GM Emulator's event meaning tables for inspiration and got Develop and Vehicle. Mining tracks are well-established in the video game, so I decided they weren't all for carts—some were for trains. Oh, and if you're interested in the songs that you heard snippets of from Tric's player, one was On the Railroad by The Longest Johns (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=udICE0keewk), and the other was an American folk song called Red Iron Ore. We like the version performed by Bob Gibson (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sbt6_gmAfqE). Our character art by Del Borovic and the map we refer to (by me!) can be found here. Our music is sampled from Return to Wesnoth by Matthias Westlund (aka West), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, part of The Battle for Wesnoth Project. Visit them at wesnoth.org. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
All is not well at the shop of Fritz the Tailor. Scene 4 Scene 5 Scene 6 Scene 7 Scene 8 Our music is from Purple Planet Music. Visit them at purple-planet.com. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Tric and Heppa negotiate with saurians. Scene 10 Scene 11 Scene 12 GM Notes This arc, we used a number of video game units to help flesh out our story. Tric imagined Breda as an Elvish Captain. Quemilya's magic theory discussion was influenced by the Sorceress write-up, as Tric's training is by the one for the Elvish Lord. And some of the rapid-seeming changes in the society of our short-lived saurian allies came from the descriptions and artwork of such units as Skirmisher, Ambusher, and Soothsayer. Some cultural details are pulled from the general overview of saurians on the Wesnoth wiki, but I put my own spin on them. Our character art by Del Borovic and the map we refer to (by me!) can be found here. Our music is sampled from Return to Wesnoth by Matthias Westlund (aka West), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, part of The Battle for Wesnoth Project. Visit them at wesnoth.org. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Mariah and Cleve get unexpected help reaching the main Morgan dome. Scene 1 Scene 2 Scene 3 Our music is from Purple Planet Music. Visit them at purple-planet.com. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Tric and Heppa return to the Foul Fen. Scene 8 Scene 9 Our character art by Del Borovic and the map we refer to (by me!) can be found here. Our music is sampled from Return to Wesnoth by Matthias Westlund (aka West), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, part of The Battle for Wesnoth Project. Visit them at wesnoth.org. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Pastor Thara shows off the wreckage of the colony pod. Scene 13 Scene 14 Scene 15 Scene 16 GM Notes This is the first we hear of Pravin Lal, who you might know as another faction leader from the Alpha Centauri video game. There, he leads the Peacekeepers, a democratic group devoted to the original Unity ideals. In our game, it remains to be seen what kind of society he heads. Our music is from Purple Planet Music. Visit them at purple-planet.com. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Tric begins training in preparation for his future as an elvish lord. Scene 6 Scene 7 Our character art by Del Borovic and the map we refer to (by me!) can be found here. Our music is sampled from Return to Wesnoth by Matthias Westlund (aka West), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, part of The Battle for Wesnoth Project. Visit them at wesnoth.org. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
The current inhabitants of Cliff Island are not thrilled to have visitors. Scene 12 Our music is from Purple Planet Music. Visit them at purple-planet.com. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!
Thrandolil's research begins to cause disquiet in the young elves who have been performing his field work. Scene 4 Scene 5 Our character art by Del Borovic and the map we refer to (by me!) can be found here. Our music is sampled from Return to Wesnoth by Matthias Westlund (aka West), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, part of The Battle for Wesnoth Project. Visit them at wesnoth.org. Need context? Jump to the start of the series!