Stag in the Back - August 28, 2026

- What One Hand Giveth

 

BLINKY BACKWOODS BATTLE

- The blink stag looks over the group, opens its mouth and screams like a terrified child frightening Zemma and Caleb.

- Squirrels jump out of the trees and bushes next to Soliana and Niniel. The first lands directly on Soliana's head, and Niniel throws a spell (Silvery Barbs) knocking it off before it can hurt her, but then she gets bitten by another one for some psychic and piercing dmg.

- Poetry summons Ember who burns the stag and the squirrel next to Niniel on entry and then throws an Flame Seed at the same squirrel 

- Niniel summons a tentacle and smacks the squirrel next to Soliana for 14 cold dmg and it is not moving slightly more slowly. Then Niniel grabs the squirrel gnawing on her shoulder and it takes 9 lightning dmg and cannot take reactions. The squirrel explodes into black spaghetti. 

- The blink stag runs up to Soliana and rakes her with its antlers for 8 piercing and 4 psychic dmg. Then in its turn kicks her with its back hoof for 10 bludgeoning dmg and then it blinks away. 

- Zemma side steps towards Caleb and then throws a hand axe at the squirrel next to Soliana but misses.

- Another squirrel jumps out of the trees kind of in the middle of everybody and starts chittering and squeaking like mad. Nothing happens as everybody saves.

- Caleb throws a couple of psychic dmg daggers at the squirrel "menacing" Soliana, but both misses. Then he pulls himself together and stops being Frightened of the stag.

- The stag runs at Niniel and gores her with its horns for 6 piercing and 6 psychic dmg then as it turns to run away it kicks her with a back hoof for 12 bludgeoning dmg.

- Soliana Starlight steps across the clearing away from the squirrel and the group then she casts Grim's Avatar (Bigby's Hand) smashing into the stag for 15 force dmg. Then she runs around the tree she Stepped next to.

- A squirrel jumps out of a tree and misses Caleb.

- Another squirrel lands on Poetry and bites her for 10 piercing and 4 psychic dmg.

 

- The stag runs up to Poetry missing with its antlers and then manages to slam her with a back hoof for 15 bludgeoning dmg. Then it blinks into the middle of the clearing next to a bush.

- The squirrel that was menacing Soliana runs over to Zemma and tries to chitter and squeak. This time Zemma and Caleb take 7 psychic dmg and they have Disadv on their next attack roll. 

- Poetry steps away from the squirrel chewing on her and then casts Burning Hands on two of the squirrels. Then Ember throws a Flame Seeds at the stag but misses again. 

- The stag runs up to Zemma and gores her with its horns for 19 piercing and 4 psychic dmg and then it slams her with its back hooves on the turn and deals 7 bludgeoning dmg, then runs around where it can see Soliana behind the tree where she is hiding.

- Niniel (who the DM accidentally skipped) casts Eldritch Blast at squirrel 3 but misses and then casts the second one at the same target for 14 force dmg. And the squirrel explodes. She then moves into the clearing and can see the squirrel next to Caleb and blasts it with Eldritch Blast for 11 force dmg. Her tentacle slithers over to squirrel 5, but misses.

- Zemma moves around Caleb next to the squirrel menacing him and then she Rages and becomes a bitey kitty and claws the squirrel for 10 piecing dmg and it explodes out with black spaghetti and a shriveled little squirrel corpse drops to the ground. 

- Caleb throws a dagger at the stag for 7 psychic dmg and the second one also find its target for another 7 psychic dmg 

- The stag runs forward and gores Caleb for 12 piercing and 4 psychic and then clams his hooves into Caleb for 8 bludgeoning dmg. 

- Soliana moves Grim's Avatar to the stag and slams into it for 23 force then dashes around some trees and casts Mind Sliver at the stag for 5 psychic dmg and it's a little dazed (-1d4 on its next ST before Soliana's next turn. Grim's Avatar evaporates.

- The last squirrel struts up to Poetry and chews on her, but a tentacle gets in the way, so it takes 6 dmg away from the attack. 

 

- The stag runs over to Soliana and gores her for 9 piercing and 5 psychic dmg and then hoofs her for 16 bludgeoning dmg. Then darts past Niniel in the clearning.

- Poetry casts Call Lightning in the middle of the clearing and zaps a glancing blow at the stag for 7 lightning dmg. Ember misses the stag with a Flame Seed.

- Niniel (who didn't get forgotten this round) is now inspired and casts Lightning Bolt on the stag for 45 lightning dmg. The tentacles smacks for the last squirrel for 12 cold dmg and it's slowed a bit.

- The stag staggers at Niniel but misses with its antler, but manages to cold cock her with a back hoof for 11 bludgeoning dmg. 

- Zemma moves laterally and manages to throw a hand axe at the last squirrel for 10 slashes dmg and the squirrel is dead. 

- Caleb throws a dagger at the stag for 11 psychic dmg and then misses with the second dagger, then he darts around a tree.

- The stag runs straight through a bush at Poetry missing her with his antlers and then kicks her for 15 bludgeoning dmg. It then runs into the middle of the group again.

- Soliana guzzles her Healing Elixir for 11 HP then she casts Mind Sliver on the stag again for 6 psychic dmg. Then she runs and hides behind a big tree again.

- Poetry sends a Called Lightning at the stag which takes another glancing blow for 7 lightning dmg. Ember throw a successful Flame Seed at the stag for 6 fire dmg. 

- Niniel casts Hold Monster on the stag and it is Paralyzed. She then runs up to the stag and and brings her tentacle over too which whacks the stag for 25 cold dmg. 

- The stag screams again dealing 16 psychic dmg to the Frightened Zemma and 8 to everyone except Soliana who is too far away. It then teleports out of the clearing into the forest. It is still Paralyzed.

- Zemma moves a little to where she can see the stag, but her hand axe bounces off a tree. Her second attempt hits for 13 slashing dmg.

- Caleb runs all the way up to the stag (Dash bonus action) and stabs it with his psychic dagger for 59 psychic dmg. The stag collapses into a pile of black spaghetti with the corpse of an extremely emaciated stag in the middle of the pile. 

 

 - The kid is just laying on the ground as all the mayhem has gone on around him. He's murmuring to himself and his eyes are still black.

- The Keepers gather the boy up again and rush back to the village. It's the middle of the night. 

- They take Timothy to the inn and take turns watching him through the night. They ask the overnight barkeep if there's diamonds in town anywhere for a cure for Timothy. He says maybe the apothecary might have some if it's for a cure.

- About an hour after they get back, Timothy's mother shows up and the Keepers explain what happened to Timothy, but not yet the whole situation with the village. 

- The all still take shifts to watch him through the rest of the night and into the morning just in case. During their rest, Zemma has nightmares about the giant stag crushing her and the horrible taste of the squirrel that she killed, so she does not benefit from the long rest.  

 

- 4,800 XP ea for 85,000 XP total each - Level up!

Reverse Kidnapping Kidnapped Kid Napping - August 7, 2026

 - What One Hand Gives

 

- Poetry pets trees as they walk into the forest.

- Stardust the owl flies above the canopy to keep an eye on the rising smoke

- Eventually the sky gets hazy with incoming rain, and Stardust can't see the smoke any more.

SKILLZ CHALLENGE 

- Caleb parkours up a tree and determines they have walked in a bit of a circle, and finds a new bearing for them to follow (Acrobatics of 22 - SUCCESS)

- Niniel find a nearby stream and sticks her head into the water and ask for directions (Persuasion 23 - SUCCESS) A crawfish tells her that sometimes kids tramp over the log over the creek and occasionally splash in the water in exchange for a shell from her hair, but they usually head that way. Niniel's vision goes dark while her head is in the stream, and she sees a big bulbous shape in the darkness (like a pufferfish? but not a water creature, she feels like she's been buried alive) it has eyes, but looks like it is sleeping and having a bad dream. She grabs a smooth river rock on her way back up.

- The forest becomes denser and darker as they continue. Niniel summons some Dancing anglerfish Lights.

- They find some animal tracks, some deer, and some of the trees have antler marks. 

- After another little while they approach a clearing, but the clearing is eerily silent. In the trees around the clearing there are birds and squirrels and other critters, but they are all just sitting there staring vacantly.

- Zemma examines the clearing and the animals (Survival 19 - SUCCESS) and she manages to make her way across the clearing by carefully following the deer tracks. As she is crossing the clearing, a squirrel makes eye contact with Zemma and makes a chittering noise, but the sounds is more a child giggling than a normal squirrel chitter. 

- Soliana notices that the squirrel that laughed at Zemma is following them. She has Stardust the owl capture the squirrel alive and bring it to Poetry so she can ask it questions. (Arcana 21 - SUCCESS) When Stardust drops the giggler into her hands, Soliana can see through the small non-fatal wounds from the owl's talons that instead of blood and muscle, the little creature's body looks like it is stuffed with black, skinny, stringy

- Poetry casts Speak with Animals and asks it who it is, why it's following us, and if we can help it. (Animal Handling 20 - SUCCESS) She then casts Cure Wounds on it, and the wounds close up. It giggles again.

- The squirrel makes another sounds like children laugh, and it says, "We all see you." Niniel casts Detect Magic and sees that there are magical shenanigans that is a mix of transmutation and necromancy and a sprinkle of enchantment.

- Poetry dumps her coin pouch into her backpack and hands it to Soliana who stuffs the squirrel tail first into the bag and then tightens the drawstring so that only it's little head is sticking out.  

- The eventually reach a part of the forest that looks like it is dead or dying. There's no underbrush, and most of the trees are leaf-less. There are some mushrooms growing around, but that's about it. Some of the tree have red string tied around them. The sound of a child's scream floats with the breeze.

- Caleb tells everyone else to wait here and he does a quiet, stealthy circuit of the clearing (Stealth 29 - SUCCESS) finding a good path, and then comes back and leads everyone across to a larger opening surrounded by a ring of dead trees, and there is a homey little cottage in the clearing.

SUCCESS NAVIGATION 

- Niniel casts Invisibility on herself and stealths (badly) up to the cottage and uses her Ghostly Gaze to look through the wall. She sees that inside the room is like a cottage kitchen with a hearth and a stove. There's a woman tending the fire and the stove, and there's another woman sitting at the table on the opposite side. There are herbs and roots and things hung from the rafters. 

- The woman at the stone suddenly looks up and says "Who is spying on me?" and whips around to look directly at Niniel, who is invisible and on the other side of a solid wall. Niniel waves, and then walks around a little bit. The woman waves back. Niniel Misty Steps out of there. The door opens and the woman looks around outside. Niniel freezes still invisible.

- The woman says from the doorway back into the house, "I think we have visitors." The second woman also appears at the door. 

- The first woman says, "Come out, come out wherever you are."

- Soliana steps out from the tree line and says she's looking for Timothy who got lost in the woods. 

- They invite Soliana in for tea, and Soliana asks about the squirrel in the pouch at her belt. They say to invite her sneaky friend in too, and Soliana says that her friend snuck off and Soliana doesn't know where she went as she walks closer towards the doorway to the cottage.

- They call out so that everyone can hear, "Sneaky friend, you should come in for tea too."

- Niniel starts walking up, but casts Detect Magic causing Invisibility to drop and she can see that the two women radiate Illusion magic. An examination of what she can see of the house shows no sort of tethers or other magic besides their illusion spells.

- Soliana and Niniel walk into the house.

- The front room and kitchen looks like the inside of a nice country cottage. They chat about Timothy and other people from the village while tea is steeped, and then an earthy, spicy smelling tea is handed around in thick earthenware mugs. Soliana pretends to drink the tea. Niniel actually drinks the tea.

- Niniel asks how the one woman saw her when Niniel waved. She says she just heard Niniel. 

- Soliana then asks if they trade for the things they forage in the woods why there isn't a path to their house. No answer is given that is satisfactory.

- Soliana meets Niniel's eyes and tries to look at the women and then back and Niniel and then back at the women and then back and Niniel.

- Soliana casts Dispel Magic on the woman doing most of the talking. The Illusion disappears from her and in front of them is a bulbous, squat, fat, creature wearing only a loincloth made of stringy bits, with a long pointy nose sticking out from stringy hair curtaining the rest of the face. She sighs and asks why Soliana would ruin a perfectly good evening?  

- Niniel then casts Hold Monster on the hag.

- The other woman who still looks like a woman in her early 60s stands at the ready for further action.

- Soliana holds up her hands and says, "We just want to know what's happening to the children."

- The hag says it's time to put all the cards out on the table, so Soliana puts the bag with the squirrel on the table. The hag declares that a weird card, but does admit they created the creatures like that. They would love to get rid of the giggling.

- The hags say they are helping the village by keeping the thing beneath the village asleep or it would wake up and kill everyone.

- Soliana asks the hags what they would do if they could get rid of the thing sleeping beneath the village so that they don't have to "help" any more, but they just never answer.

- The hags say that the creature consumes dreams and that children's dreams are special, more vivid, more magical because they have such big imaginations. The hags take their dreams and use them to hold the creature at bay.

- Soliana goes quiet while Niniel is still asking questions and then she just goes over to the door and opens it to find Caleb listening at the door. She then gestures for the rest of their friends to come inside as well.

- There is some more chat with roundabout answers to things, and Soliana tries to ask where Timothy is, but can't get an answer other than that he will be returned in a few days.

- Niniel just gets up and goes over to one of the other doors and opens it to find a small boy who seems to be asleep on a small straw mattress. There's a crystal suspended from the ceiling pointed over his forehead. There are runes carved into the floor around the bed. He is tied to the bed loosely The hags say not to disturb him while he's in the ritual. They don't know what will happen as the ritual has never been interrupted before.

- Niniel casts Detect Magic and gets the same transmutation and necromantic vibes as the Restless Devon. The crystal is collecting magic up from his head and that's the necromantic element, while there's a transmutation sort of magic tether forming and going down into the earth. 

- Niniel calls for help freeing the kid despite what the hags have said.

- Niniel pushes the crystal aside and starts sawing at the bonds holding him to the bed. Timothy immediately wakes up, his eyes are solid black orbs and he starts screaming and thrashing and Soliana put him (ironically) to Sleep with a spell. 

- Niniel takes the crystal while Zemma carries Timothy outside.

- About halfway across the clearing while heading back to town, Timothy wakes back up from Soliana's spell and she casts Dispel Magic on him, and while he is no longer screaming and thrashing, his eyes are still black and he's muttering things like "He can see me. He's going to get me." amongst other gibberish.

- Soliana looks back to the hags, but then she sees that the trees are full of squirrels just staring at them. As they keep walking there's the sound of an animal immediately followed by the sound of a child screaming.

- Niniel immediately turns and takes a few steps in the direction of the scream.

- Out of the forest gloom a large stag jumps out and gives Niniel a toss of it's antlers, but it misses. Then it blink teleports a few feet away and turns to face the rest of the group. It's eyes are solid black like Timothy's and it's antlers look strangely overgrown and not right.

- Initiatives are rolled.    

 

- Boofing comes up due to a mishearing. Several definitions are laughed at. 

 

- 3,000 XP ea for 79,200 XP total each