Ian, Shannon, and Liz were unable to attend this session, so it’s just the Buras-clan playing today. The kids were in a particularly crazy mood, singing the Animaniacs theme while waiting for the session to start. Victor expressed interest in playing at first, but when he realized there was not going to be any combat he decided to go play in the other room instead.
At the end of the previous session the party was in the courtroom watching the trial. Queen Themaphila declared that the Goblin, Slogoth, is on trial for stealing her statue. He claimed he was innocent and was adamant that he did not steal it. Dressed in a suit with patches on the elbows, like a used car salesman, he pleaded his case. In the previous session Surina and the party believed in his innocence, at least when it came to the statue in question.
DM: At this point the Queen notices the party standing in the back and motions for the guards to take away Professor, K’un-Lun, and Octavia and to give them suitable arrangements in her palace/temple, but she wants to speak to the Dragonborn and Tiefling – Surina and Lysithea.
Queen: Recess until later. *seems very angry*
DM: The Queen walks down from her podium and walks in to a back room. She sits in a giant, comfortable, purple chair.
Queen: We have more guests here it seems. Have you come to pay homage to my greatness?
We have to take a moment to remind Cordelia why we were here. The party was supposed to find the comet in the middle of the desert, but when they got to the comet it was gone. We followed tracks that led us to this place. This city/temple was not always here. K’un-Lun recognized the town, but Octavia did not. We have realized that there are only men here. We also had a discussion on how to speak to royalty, and how to not upset an already angered Queen. Deceit may have been beneficial here, but neither Cordelia nor Surina wanted to lie.
Surina: No, your majesty.
Queen: Well, why have you come here then? *slams her hand* I thought you were here for me.
Surina: We are here to find the purple comet.
Lysithea: Your majesty, with all due respect, we can see that you are very great, but it was not your greatness that brought us here. However, it seems we may be able to assist you.
Queen: Assist me in what?
I take a second to remind Cordelia that we have seen the Goblin on trial before.
Surina: We have seen this Goblin before.
Queen: Oh, the creature that stole a statue and refuses to return it? My statue? A statue of me?
Surina: Yes.
Queen: Then you agree. If you’ve seen him before he must be guilty.
Surina: I think he didn’t steal it.
Lysithea: Your majesty, I agree this Goblin is terrible…
Queen: So we kill him.
Lysithea: …and he is guilty of many things…
Queen: So we kill him.
Lysithea: …but not in this. If you want your statue returned you may need to seek another course of action.
Queen: So you think he is innocent?
Surina: Yes.
Queen: Then we will have a proper trial! *elated and overjoyed*
DM: Imagine the Queen of Hearts from Alice in Wonderland. That’s how she’s acting.
Queen: And you, my dear *points to Surina* and you, Miss Intellectual *points to Lysithea* will be his lawyers.
Lysithea: Oh great… Will we get some time to interview our… *twitches* Goblin to figure out what happened?
Queen: Yes, yes, you can have some time with him. And go speak to the town. You can interview whoever you want. *claps twice* You may go.
DM: She stands and motions you to leave.
Queen: And if you win you may see the purple comet and do what you want with it… possibly…
DM: Guards come and lead you to the jail where Slogoth is sitting in a cell by himself.
Lysithea: I hate you.
Slogoth: Well, look who the snakes dragged in. Long time, no see.
Lysithea: I believe I owe you some fire. (see Session 4)
Surina: *whispers to Lysithea* Don’t do it.
Slogoth: Well, what brings you to this quaint *taps on bars* interesting environment?
DM: Make a perception roll (Lysithea 16, Surina 4). Lysithea, you notice the bars don’t ding like normal metal should. You also see flakes fall off when he taps them, like rust flakes, even though it looks pristine.
Surina: We have come to find the purple comet.
Slogoth: Wonderful! I know where it is. If you can just unlock the doors I can show you and we can all be on our way.
Lysithea: Do you really think we’re here to let you out of jail?
Slogoth: Well, she said you’re here to find the comet, and I saw them bring it in. I know where it is.
Surina: We are here to act as your lawyers.
Slogoth: Ah, well that’s interesting, isn’t it… So you all believe me? Cause I didn’t steal it. (Surina rolls insight, 4, it 100% feels like he’s telling the truth)
Lysithea: How about you start with what you did steal.
Slogoth: Woah now, throw in the accusations there. Do you want the long list or the short list?
Lysithea: How about just what you stole front that chest in the inn.
Slogoth: I have no clue what you are talking about. (Lysithea rolls insight, adjusted 20)
Lysithea: Yeah I know you’re lying here.
Slogoth: See, we’re here not to split hairs. Just to say I didn’t steal the statue, right?
Lysithea: If you want us to believe you, you will be honest with all of our questions. (Rolls Nat 1 persuasion, but Slogoth also rolled a Nat 1)
DM: He seems put off by you, but he also seems like he wants to tell someone the truth, just not Lysithea.
Surina: It will benefit you to tell us the truth. (Rolls persuasion, adjusted 20)
Slogoth: Okay, fine. I stole a lot of things, but nothing here yet. To be honest, I was looking for something to steal. What I did steal from that chest, it’s in my hideout, so you would say. It was just some relic of some sort. Couldn’t even sell it. But here I didn’t even steal anything, but nobody believes me.
Lysithea: If we are able to prove your innocence will you return the relic to us?
Slogoth: Yeah, that sounds fair.
Lysithea: Okay, so let’s now let’s ask about here.
We are now starting the investigation portion of this session. Dad and I have a talk with Cordelia about interrogation and what kind of questions to we should ask. We will also need to gather evidence to prove Slogoth’s innocence.
Lysithea: When did you get here?
Slogoth: A few days ago.
Lysithea: Can you be more specific?
Slogoth: *rolls his eyes* 2 days ago.
Lysithea: Was there something particular that you wanted to steal, or were you just perusing?
Slogoth: I was like a kid in a candy store. There were just so many things to steal, but I couldn’t put my finger on the weird things going on here.
Lysithea: Do you know when this statue was stolen?
Slogoth: When I was perusing I saw something.
Surina: What did you see?
Slogoth: I wasn’t quite sure, but it looked like a female with wings.
Cordelia asked if there are any races with wings in the D&D book. Dad told her not races you can choose from to play as, but there are races with wings.
Lysithea: We’re the wings from her back or from her arms?
Slogoth: From her back. Kind of looked like you *points to Lysithea* but with wings.
Lysithea: Some Tieflings do have wings…
Surina: So maybe it was a Tiefling with wings that stole the statue.
Lysithea: When you saw her which way was she going?
Slogoth: Well, like I said, I didn’t get a great view of her. We were in the room. She took it, and then darkness, and then ran. And I can see in darkness. Couldn’t see in this darkness.
Lysithea: She used a spell. No one can see in that kind of darkness. Were there other people around who also saw this?
Slogoth: Yeah, but they saw me. Thought I was sneaking well enough. There were 2 guards.
Lysithea: And, I’m just clarifying, but these guards would have also seen that darkness?
Slogoth: *shrugs* I don’t know what these people see here. Something’s off.. She didn’t touch you did she?
Surina: Who?
Slogoth: The Queen! Did she touch you?
Lysithea: No… Why…?
Slogoth: Like I said, something’s off. She came over to me, tried to touch me. I felt a little weird, but not that weird, and then she got really angry. And then she got really angry when I didn’t just bow to her.
Lysithea: Well you’re definitely right that this place is off.
Surina: Which guards?
Slogoth: These two, they look humans, I don’t know, but they guard the room with all the treasures. You know, the statue room, the room I got caught in. But they were weird, one said one thing, the other said the opposite, very odd.
I looked at Justice at this and said, “I don’t like you… are you trying to do this to me or to her?” He replied, “Both”.
Surina and Lysithea go to interrogate the guards.
DM: You are politely pointed where to go, but with a big “Don’t touch anything”. When you enter you see the place is filled with treasures. Lots of it, you notice, are statues, but they are of artwork that you recognize as the sphinx and snakes; however, they look pristine and new. (Lysithea rolls perception, 19) These are definitely older looking things. Everything about them is old, but they look new. There is one pedestal that is empty.
Lysithea: Is that were the statue was?
Guard A: What statue?
Lysithea: The one that was stolen.
Guard A: Yes.
Lysithea: Are you the 2 guards that were on duty when it was stolen?
Guard B: We weren’t guarding the statue.
Lysithea: But were you in the room?
Guard B: When?
Lysithea: *rolling eyes* Were you in the room when the statue that belongs on the pedestal was stolen?
Guard B: No.
Lysithea: And you?
Guard A: Yes.
Lysithea: So this wasn’t the guard with you?
Guard A: Yes he was.
Lysithea: And he says he wasn’t?
Guard A: That is correct.
Lysithea: So one of you is lying.
Guard A: Possibly.
Lysithea: I hate this. Your turn Surina.
We give Cordelia her options – ask the guards a question at the same time, or one then the other. She chooses to ask both at the same time. What’s a question you would ask someone to see if they are telling the truth?
Surina: Who is telling the truth?
Both guards point to themselves.
Dad to Cordelia: One thing you can do is look at what they look like. So what are you looking for? You can look at their eye color, what they are holding, how they are holding it…
She wants to look at their weapon and how they are holding it.
DM: Both are holding a spear, but Guard A is holding a spear with his right hand, and Guard B is holding with his left hand. They both have the same eye color, the same hair, just how they are holding the spear is different.
Cordelia is going to ask which guard is holding their spear with their right hand, but we jump in and suggest she ask about the left hand. The word “right” has multiple meanings.
Surina: Which one of you holding your spear with your left hand?
Guard A points to Guard B, and Guard B points to Guard A. Guard A is telling the truth.
This was completely pointless because Lysithea had already figured out which guard was telling the truth, but we wanted to do the exercise with Cordelia, so we went through the motions anyway.
Lysithea: At the time the statue was stolen did you see darkness that could not be seen through?
Guard A: No.
Lysithea: What did you see?
Guard A: We came and we saw a goblin. The statue was gone.
Lysithea: The statue was gone but the Goblin was there.
Guard A: Yes. He opened up a portal, according to the Queen.
Lysithea: Did you see the portal?
Guard A: No.
Lysithea: The Goblin was there, but the statue was gone, and he didn’t’ go in the portal with it?
Surina: Did he touch it?
Guard A: He must have. He touched multiple things in here.
Lysithea: Where is your proof that he touched things?
Guard A: The Queen said so.
Lysithea: Where is YOUR proof that he touched things?
Guard A: The Queen said so.
Lysithea: Has the Queen touched you?
Guard A: Of course. She is a benevolent Queen.
Lysithea: *this is dumb*
Surina: Which things did he touch?
Guard A: He was looking at other statues, that’s how we know he stole it.
Surina: Well I believe that he didn’t steal the statue.
Guard A: Then why would he be looking for other things as well? You can investigate the room, no one else was in here, you will see.
Lysithea: Where was the Goblin standing when you entered the room?
Guard A: Behind that statue. *points*
Lysithea and Surina inspect that area (Lysithea adjusted 20, Surina 11). They find a dusty area where the guard had pointed. There’s an actual pile of dust, and prints that indicate someone was kneeling there. This is the first time the party has encountered dust in this city. Lysithea touches the dust, and it is dirt, sandstone, dusty-dust. They investigate the area around the stolen statue (Lysithea 18, Surina 4) and find dust around that pedestal as well.
We are letting Cordelia lead the investigation. Dad/DM draws a map of the room, with places indicating the different statues, doors, and windows. He asks if the goblin was watching from here, and he saw the lady with wings come grab it, where do you think she entered from? She picks a window, and rolls investigation 17.
The window has dust all around it, and there looks to be hand prints in the dust. These are not tiny hands. Lysithea calls in Guard A, the truth telling guard, to look at the dust prints they have found so far. First where Slogoth was kneeling, then the window and the hand prints.
Lysithea: Do you see the handprint?
Guard A: Yes.
Lysithea: What does this handprint look like?
Guard A: Like someone needs to clean this up immediately before the Queen sees it.
Lysithea: Does this look like a Goblin hand print to you?
Guard A: I do not know.
Lysithea: Can we bring the Goblin in here to compare handprints?
Guard A: He must remain in his prison cell.
For the seasoned and more extreme D&D players you may have thought, “Why don’t they just cut off his hand and bring it in to check?” Well, I thought of that, too, but I am playing with my 7 year old daughter and she is too sweet and innocent to be exposed to that kind of thinking.
We point out to Cordelia that if the thief entered somehow, she had to exit somehow. What else could you look for? Where do you think she could have exited? Do you think she went out the same window? Cordelia points to the one closer to the statue. She goes to investigate the window and rolls a Nat 20.
DM: You see everything about this window. It looks like someone had opened it, and the dust shows foot prints on it. But these are heavy footprints, like someone jumped. So it looks like someone jumped, and the dust is spread, as if something like wings were used. The footprint is a shoe, so Lysithea knows it’s not a Tiefling (they have hooves). This came from a medium-sized humanoid.
Lysithea brings Guard A over to see the shoe prints, and the width from the wings.
Lysithea: So you say he was the only one in here and yet there is evidence that someone else entered and left. Do you see this evidence?
Guard A: Yes.
Do you think this is enough evidence, or do you need to find more? Cordelia thinks we need more.
The party returns to the prison to further interrogate Slogoth.
Lysithea: We have found through investigation that, yes, something with wings did enter and leave.
Slogoth: Good, so you found her.
Lysithea: Quiet. We have also found that the Queen states that you touched other objects and that you opened up a portal.
Slogoth: *pauses a moment* I did not do any of those things whatsoever. That doesn’t seem like me.
Lysithea rolls insight (18), and knows he’s lying.
Lysithea: Surina, he’s lying again. Can you get him to tell the truth?
Surina: Tell us the truth. (Rolls persuasion, Nat 20)
Slogoth: Fine, fine, fine. Definitely touched stuff. And you know, it’s not what it seems at all. And that portal, it wasn’t exactly a portal.
Slogoth takes out black cloth that looks like silk and shakes it out. It forms in to a circular, 6ft diameter sheet, which he throws on the ground.
Slogoth: Ta-da, portal.
Lysithea: What is that?
Slogoth: It’s a portable hole. My hideout.*reaches in and pulls out things, including a weird shaped relic thing that looks really old*
Lysithea: This is your hideout? Do you have anything from here in that hole?
Slogoth: Nothing here is good enough.
Lysithea: What happens when you touch the stuff here?
Slogoth: I don’t know what happens, I’m not smart enough. Things look all nice and pretty, but in reality it looks more like me.
Lysithea: So when you touch it, you see what it actually looks like?
Slogoth: Yeah.
Lysithea: You have all of your stolen goods in this hole?
Slogoth: Eh, some here, some somewhere else.
DM: He’s telling the truth now, with that Nat 20 Surina rolled.
Slogoth: I don’t keep all my goods in the same spot, that’s amateur stuff. But when you’re out in the field you might as well have some place to put it.
Lysithea: And you can’t make portals?
Slogoth: Do I look like I’m magic?
Lysithea: Look, this place is weird, and it’s full of weird people. Please just give me a straight answer.
Slogoth: No. *folds up his hole, but keeps the relic out*
Lysithea: Is that what you took from the chest?
Slogoth: Yeah, yeah. Here.
Slogoth hands Lysithea the relic, which is very poorly designed. It’s almost like a children’s carving of something. Lysithea takes the relic and puts it in her bag. Surina and Lysthiea now have enough evidence to go to trial.
The trial is happening and the Queen is overjoyed.
Queen: An actual trial! *sets a scale on her podium*
Imagine Law & Order as you picture Lysithea and Surina walking in with their Goblin client.
Queen: This is going to be fun! As you give your evidence the magic scales will determine if you are telling the truth and providing the right justification. Paladin, demon thing, present, present! Let us here the defense of this guilty Goblin.
Surina: Your majesty, we would like to present our first bit of evidence. We found dust and prints in the treasure room.
Lysithea: We found prints that, yes, belonged to our Goblin, but we also found evidence that someone else had entered and exited the room.
Surina: We found hand prints on the window (rolls persuasion, 8).
The scales move a little from very guilty to a little less guilty.
Surina: These handprints show that someone else bigger than a Goblin climbed in through the window.
Queen: Okay, so all I can see is that my guards are incompetent and deserve to be thrown in jail themselves. Continue.
Surina: We also found dust where the person exited.
Lysithea: The dust we found indicated a medium-sized humanoid creature wearing shoes jumped out the window. It also shows that wings were expanded and used in that jump. This coincides with Slogoth’s alibi of someone else flying down and away with the statue. (Surina rolls persuasion, 17)
The scales shift more and the Queen is becoming agitated.
Queen: Okay, so? Someone came in and flew off. Does this show where my statue is?
Lysithea: Your truth telling guard can confirm these things (persuasion 11, scales shift a little). Your majesty, you have claimed that Slogoth was able to steal the statue using a portal. Unfortunately, Slogoth here is incapable of using magic. He cannot make a portal, but he does have a portable hole.
Surina: Can you show it to us? (Persuasion, 7)
Slogoth: Uhhh, I don’t think so.
Lysithea: (intimidation, 21) *through gritted teeth* Show the hole!
Slogoth: Fine! *pulls out hole* What can I get for this relic here? Do I hear 10 gold pieces? 10 gold pieces for this fine relic here?
Lysithea: SHHHHHHHH!
Slogoth: Fine… as you can see there’s no statue.
The scales are completely balanced.
Lysithea: Does he have stolen goods in here? Yes, but as you can see none of them are from this town or temple.
The Queen begins throwing a fit (Surina 7, Lysithea 14 perception roll). Her skin starts to look a bit scaly as she throws a fit. Lysithea knows that this is not her true form.
Queen: I want this statue back and the Goblin is not leaving till I get it back! He must have worked with the thief to steal it!
Lysithea: I don’t think he’s that smart.
Queen: I don’t care, if you want to see him free find that statue for me! And the purple comet is staying hidden until I have my statue back!
Lysithea: I guess we have no choice, we need to go find our thief.
Court adjourned. End session
Analysis: I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – This is a learning process for all of us, not just Cordelia. It was during this session that I finally confirmed what I had been suspecting – one of the reasons Cordelia hasn’t been as involved as we would like is that it has been too difficult for her. Justice is a very experienced DM, but his experience is with players our own age who also have experience. He is an expert at making puzzles that are fun and challenging, and he’s a master at thinking on the fly when his players go off the walls, but he has never DMed for a child before. One thing that Justice has struggled with since becoming a father has been his understanding of what children are capable of. Cordelia is extremely smart and it’s easy to forget how young she actually is. He has very high expectations for our children, as do I, but it’s harder for him to understand the difference between potential and capability. Justice is a teacher, but his students are a few years older than Cordelia. This is his first real experience in dealing with young children. When I pointed out to him that this has been too hard for Cordelia he realized it immediately, and felt bad that it took it being pointed out by someone else for him to notice. He didn’t feel guilty too long, however, as he immediately started planning the next session more suited to Cordelia’s needs. We have already played that session and I must say, it made a huge difference in Cordelia. Stay tuned for next session!
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