History Recap / CrafDNDChampionsChallengeE12UnderARockAndAHardPlace

[[Recap/CrafDNDChampionsChallengeE1TheRangerChallengePT1 Forrnest]] | [[Recap/CrafDNDChampionsChallengeE5TheBarbarianChampionAtlissa Volkhanom]] | [[Recap/CrafDNDChampionsChallengeE8SilentNightDeadlyKnife Lordpact]] | '''Elemix'''\\

[[Recap/CrafDNDChampionsChallengeE15OverthinkingOrigins E15: Overthinking Origins]] -]]]]]

'''Under a Rock and a Hard Place''' | [[Recap/CrafDNDChampionsChallengeE13TheGoldenGeniusHenshin The Golden Genius; Henshin!]] | [[Recap/CrafDNDChampionsChallengeE14TricksterTriosAndTreacherousTurtles Trickster Trios and Treacherous Turtles]] -]]]]]

'''Under a Rock and a Hard Place''' | [[Recap/CrafDNDChampionsChallengeE13TheGoldenGeniusHenshin The Golden Genius; Henshin!]] | [[Recap/CrafDNDChampionsChallenge14TricksterTriosAndTreacherousTurtles Trickster Trios and Treacherous Turtles]] -]]]]]

A surprise attack from Karloff and the other residents of Fraygle Coast leads to Passione discovering Cera's unsettling origins. The party then moves on to Elemix, where they acquaint themselves with the local champions and Ophelia catches up with her old teammate-turned wealthy, world-renowned philantropist, Congiorno.

** The party becomes incensed at Karloff's insensitivity towards Cera, who he couldn't be assed to feel any familial attachment to due to his concerns about her connections to Merrshaulk. The resulting argument eventually culimnates in ''Mystrief'' pitching in, calling out Karloff for his coldness and defiantly declaring that ''she'' shall be the parental figure Cera needs. Notably, this is the first time in which a Grandure deity addresses a group of people in the series, and Crafty describes the intense effects of Mystrief's voice as she speaks.

'''Under a Rock and a Hard Place''' | [[Recap/CrafDNDChampionsChallenge13TheGoldenGeniusHenshin The Golden Genius; Henshin!]] | [[Recap/CrafDNDChampionsChallenge14TricksterTriosAndTreacherousTurtles Trickster Trios and Treacherous Turtles]] -]]]]]

'''Under a Rock and a Hard Place''' | [[Recap/CrafDNDChampionsChallenge13TheGoldenGeniusHenshin The Golden Genius; Henshin!]] -]]]]]

** Surrounded by Troglodytes, Ophelia calls upon the Dawn Queen to shield her. For a brief moment, the Queen's arm flickers into view as it wraps itself in front of Ophelia... but she's not the only one providing protection. The dark, bloody hand of Lord Damniel also appears, further implying that he ''is'' some kind of god, just not necessarily the kind he wanted to become.

** Surrounded by Troglodytes, Ophelia calls upon the Dawn Queen to shield her. For a brief moment, the Queen's arm flickers into view as it wraps itself in front of Ophelia... but she's not the only one providing protection. The dark, bloody hand of Lord Damniel also appears, further implying that he is a god of some kind.

'''Under a Rock and a Hard Place''' -]]]]]

* DespairEventHorizon: Mondo finally relays some of the details behind his Tiefling curse to Osra, particularly why he had been so evasive about the subject. Back when the curse was still fresh, he was fully prepared to take on Don Matriarchy for his own benefit. One night, he was about to set out and do just that, when a young Osra, having been startled awake by a nightmare, came into his bedroom to ask if she can sleep with him. One look at the horns sprouting from her head told Mondo that he had passed down the curse to his daughter; devastated, he gave up the pursuit then and there, and despite lingering wishes to set things right, he never entertained the idea ever again. In response to this story, Osra becomes rather distraught, but she still asserts her determination to take down Matriarchy and undo the curse, especially since Mondo is bearing the brunt of its effects.

* AdultFear: Mondo finally relays some of the details behind his Tiefling curse to Osra, particularly why he had been so evasive about the subject. Back when the curse was still fresh, he was fully prepared to take on Don Matriarchy for his own benefit. One night, he was about to set out and do just that, when a young Osra, having been startled awake by a nightmare, came into his bedroom to ask if she can sleep with him. One look at the horns sprouting from her head told Mondo that he had passed down the curse to his daughter; devastated, he gave up the pursuit then and there, and despite lingering wishes to set things right, he never entertained the idea ever again. In response to this story, Osra becomes rather distraught, but she still asserts her determination to take down Matriarchy and undo the curse, especially since Mondo is bearing the brunt of its effects.

* SecretTestOfCharacter: Karloff's ambush on Osra, Calum, Ash, and Ophelia--but not Cera--was not sinisterly motivated. After he calls off his forces, he explains that it was a test to see how Passione would fare against Merrshaulk's cultists, as they will inevitably run into each other on their travels. Thus, he commanded various residents of Fraygle Coast to emulate the roles--including one monster that played ''Cera.'' She's Karloff's biggest concern; The possibility of her falling under the cult's influence and involuntarily turning against her friends is very real, seeing that she was created to be Merrshaulk's bodily vessel. The only reason he withheld this information in the first place was to guarantee that Passione wouldn't hold back, giving him an accurate study of their capabilities. The whole stunt does nothing to endear Karloff to the party, but he's more focused on the cautionary tale that his test provides.

* SecretTestOfCharacter: Karloff's ambush on Osra, Calum, Ash, and Ophelia--but not Cera--was not sinisterly motivated. After he calls off his forces, he explains that it was a test to see how Passione would fare against Merrshaulk's cultists, as they will inevitably run into each other on their travels. Thus, he commanded various residents of Fraygle Coast to emulate the roles--including one monster that played ''Cera.'' The possibility of her falling under the cult's influence is very real, seeing that she was created to be Merrshaulk's bodily vessel, so Karloff wanted to ensure that the party could take her on if necessary. The only reason he withheld this information in the first place was to guarantee that the party wouldn't hold back, giving him an accurate study of their capabilities. The whole stunt does nothing to endear Karloff to the party, but he's more focused on the cautionary tale that his test provides.

* SecretTestOfCharacter: Karloff's ambush on Osra, Calum, Ash, and Ophelia--but not Cera--was not sinisterly motivated. After he calls off his forces, he explains that it was a test to see how Passione would fare against Merrshaulk's cultists, as they will inevitably run into each other on their travels. Thus, he commanded various residents of Fraygle Coast to emulate the roles--including one monster that played ''Cera.'' The possibility of her falling under the cult's influence is very real, seeing that she was created to be Merrshaulk's bodily vessel, and Karloff wanted to ensure that the party take her on if necessary. The only reason he withheld this information in the first place was to guarantee that the party wouldn't hold back, giving him an accurate study of their capabilities. The whole stunt does nothing to endear Karloff to the party, but he's more focused on the cautionary tale that his test provides.

* SecretTestOfCharacter: Karloff's ambush on Osra, Calum, Ash, and Ophelia--but not Cera--was not sinisterly motivated. After he calls off his forces, he explains that it was a test to see how Passione would fare against Merrshaulk's cultists, as they will inevitably run into each other on their travels. Thus, he commanded various residents of Fraygle Coast to emulate the roles--including one monster that played ''Cera.'' The possibility of her falling under the cult's influence is very real, seeing that she was created to be Merrshaulk's bodily vessel, and Karloff wanted to ensure that the party could fare against her especially. The only reason he withheld this information in the first place was to guarantee that the party wouldn't hold back, giving him an accurate study of their capabilities. The whole stunt does nothing to endear Karloff to the party, but he's more focused on the cautionary tale that his test provides.

* NoHoldsBarredBeatdown: When Ash and Calum run into Fergus again in a fancy diner, they try to pay him backfor his polymorph prank in the last session. None of their attempts are successful--a failed dickpunch from Calum and a failed "Grovel" command from Ash, the former getting the bouncers' attention--so Fergus makes the mistake of taunting the two in return each time. Calum's mounting frustration eventually causes him to throw all caution to the wind, pounce on Fergus, and ''absolutely whale'' on him. Fergus is so taken aback that he can't even form a response! This gets Calum banned from the diner, but he has no regrets.

* SecretTestOfCharacter: Karloff's ambush on Osra, Calum, Ash, and Ophelia--but not Cera--was not sinisterly motivated. After he calls off his forces, he explains that it was a test to see how Passione would fare against Merrshaulk's cultists, as they will inevitably run into each other on their travels. Thus, he commanded various residents of Fraygle Coast to emulate the roles--including one monster that plays ''Cera.'' The possibility of her falling under the cult's influence is very real, seeing that she was created to be Merrshaulk's bodily vessel, and Karloff wanted to ensure that the party could fare against her especially. The only reason he withheld this information in the first place was to guarantee that the party wouldn't hold back, giving him an accurate study of their capabilities. The whole stunt does nothing to endear Karloff to the party, but he's more focused on the cautionary tale that his test provides.

* SecretTestOfCharacter: Karloff's ambush on Osra, Calum, Ash, and Ophelia was not sinisterly motivated. After he calls off his forces, he explains that it was a test to see how Passione would fare against Merrshaulk's cultists, with him commanding various residents of Fraygle Coast to emulate the roles. It's a very real possibility that Passione will encounter these cultists in the future, and He even has one creature in particular play the part of ''Cera'' for the same reason. Being a product of said cult, Cera could risk being influenced by Merrshaulk and become an enemy. The only reason Karloff withheld this information in the first place was to guarantee that the party wouldn't hold back, giving him an accurate study of their capabilities. The whole stunt does nothing to endear Karloff to the party, but he's more focused on the cautionary tale that his test provides.

* SecretTestOfCharacter: Karloff's ambush on Osra, Calum, Ash, and Ophelia was not sinisterly motivated. After he calls off his forces, he explains that it was a test to see how Passione would fare against Yuan-Ti cultists and a Merrshaulk-possessed Cera, with the various residents of Fraygle Coast emulating those roles. He simply didn't bother explaining himself and Cera's history until after the fact, to guarantee that the party wouldn't hold back. The whole stunt does nothing to endear Karloff to the party, but he's more satisfied with the message he delivered: these cultists are great in number and have just as many tricks up their sleeves, and it's up to Passione to be prepared for the worst.

[[Recap/CrafDNDChampionsChallengeE1TheRangerChallengePT1 Forrnest]] | [[Recap/CrafDNDChampionsChallengeE5TheBarbarianChampionAtlissa Volkhanom]] | [[Recap/CrafDNDChampionsChallengeE8SilentNightDeadlyKnife Lordpact]] | '''Elemix''' \\

** During the fight with Karloff, Ophelia calls upon the Dawn Queen to shield her. For a brief moment, the Queen's arm flickers into view as it wraps itself in front of Ophelia... but she's not the only one providing protection. The dark, bloody hand of Lord Damniel also appears, further implying that he is a god of some kind.
Surrounded by Troglodytes, Ophelia calls upon the Dawn Queen to shield her. For a brief moment, the Queen's arm flickers into view as it wraps itself in front of Ophelia... but she's not the only one providing protection. The dark, bloody hand of Lord Damniel also appears, further implying that he is a god of some kind.