Critical Role Presents: A Daggerheart Critmas Story | Live Show

Tron Aries has arrived.

I would like you to meet Ares, the ultimate AI soldier.

He is biblically strong and supremely intelligent.

You think you're in control of this?

You're not.

On October 10th.

What are you?

My world is coming to destroy yours, but I can help you.

The war for our world begins in IMAX.

Tron Aries, suited PG-13.

Maybe inappropriate for children under 13.

Only in theaters October 10th.

Get tickets now.

Ooh, Gecko, I just love being able to file a claim in under two minutes with the Geico app.

Could you sign it?

Sign what?

The app?

Sure.

Oh, it rubbed off the screen when I touched it.

Could you sign it again?

Anything to help, I suppose.

Get more than just savings.

Get more with Geico.

Hey there, Critical Role podcast listeners.

We have a special new membership service at beacon.tv where you can get early access to all new podcast episodes, including Critical Role for the first time ever.

Beacon members also get things like event pre-sales, merch discounts, access to a private community Discord, and new exclusive series like Critical Role Cooldown, where we riff after the show.

Think of it as our digital Critical Role band.

Head on over to Beacon.tv to check it out for yourself and start a seven-day free trial.

Thank you so, so much for your support, for being a podcast listener, and for being a part of our community.

Hey there, critters.

We are so excited to share with you our brand new podcast from the world of Xandria, the Reslayer's Take.

In this audio adventure, you'll be guided through the wild continent of Asilra, home to some of the most dangerous creatures.

Here, the Slayer's Take is the most notorious monster-hunting group in the realm.

But...

When previously slain creatures start returning from the grave, it's up to six misfit mercenaries to band together and re-slay these supernatural threats as the re-slayers take.

So come follow along these audio escapades as the second coolest monster hunters this side of Xandria battle a growing undead army of dangerous creatures.

The party is led by a duo of Game Masters, George Primavera and Nick Williams, with the main cast including Jasmine Bular, Caroline Lux, and Jasmine Shion.

Listen to new episodes every Monday anywhere you stream podcasts, or become a Beacon member and listen to the podcast two weeks early and uninterrupted by ads.

Hi there, this is Talis and Jaffe and welcome to the podcast version of the Critical Roll Show.

If you would like to watch the stream as it airs, you can tune in on Thursdays at 7 p.m.

Pacific at twitch.tv slash critical role or at youtube.com slash critical roll.

The video on demand demand versions are immediately available for our Twitch subscribers or on YouTube the following Mondays at 12 p.m.

Pacific.

Podcast episodes are right here on the Critical Role Podcast Network on Thursdays one week after the initial broadcast.

Now that you know all that, let's head into today's adventure.

Oh, oh, hello.

Hi, hello.

I'm Mamlin.

What's your name?

Well, I'll try to remember.

I'll try to remember all of those.

I think you know my kids.

A tiny green one

and a yellow metal one,

and then there's that wandering bard.

He's always been so horny, that boy.

I'll tell you a secret.

He got that

from me.

But at least it made me finally a grandma.

Oh, there's a chair.

Oh,

that's better.

Lately I've had so much time on my hands.

Those Thursday nights are so

long.

So I decided to take up knitting.

I'm making something special for my boy Braus.

You know, Braus?

Winter is coming.

It's going to to be a cold winter.

And so I made him something to keep his nether parts

warm.

You think this will help?

He didn't inherit that from me.

Oh,

wait,

I'm not a knitter,

I'm a critter.

And it's Christmas.

And look,

all my gifts are right here in front of me.

I I love it, too.

So let's get this party started.

Hit it, boys.

I've been your

mumlin for so long

And now I'm here to sing my song And with you here because you're so smart

Let's dive into Dagger Heart

We'll roll for some hope and fear

and sharing the Christmas cheer

because critical role

is here.

Now let's welcome them to the cast.

Are you ready?

I think the first one coming is

Travis Willingham.

Next, we have

Leon O'Brien.

I think I see Talis and Jeffy.

She's in the house, Ashley Johnson.

It's Laura Bailey

Marisha Ray's here.

Oh, Ashley Johnson.

I blew it.

I blew it.

Oh, I didn't.

Okay, good.

And the center of our universe,

it's Matthew Mercer.

Everyone's here.

Everyone's here!

We're ready to get started!

I'm gonna

fairly certain we're missing

we're missing one!

What we're missing one!

Missing one, yeah.

Sorry.

What do you think?

I forget my own son?

I was just saving the best for last.

Please welcome the best boy in the whole world,

Sarigo!

I love you exactly.

And now

we're ready to start the show.

Are you ready?

Let's do it.

Bye.

Bye-bye.

Bye, Mamlin.

She's got it.

Hello, everyone, and welcome to tonight's

special Christmas critical role one-shot.

Where a bunch of us nerdy-ass voice actors sit around and play Dagger Heart.

Thank you all so much for joining us.

This is so much fun.

It's, as you probably heard when my mic was on backstage, it's going to be pretty weird.

We have some wonderful suggestions from our VIP crew that have radically made it weirder.

I'm excited to try and incorporate some of that.

And of course, tonight we are showcasing the rules for Dagger Heart, the very final rules that are coming out in the near future.

Yesterday, we got to reveal the final covers for both the standard and the limited editions of the game.

Super excited about that.

I cannot express how excited we are for this game to finally become a reality after years of hard work.

So,

there it is.

There it is.

Look at the beautiful thing.

Gorgeous game.

So pretty.

I love it.

But yeah, so if you have the inkling to try it out yourself, you can pre-order now

at daggerheart.com.

Sam, no, actually, Mercia, you got an announcement.

Yeah, I'm taking it over for Sam, you guys.

This week we also released Critical Role Presents, colon, Winter's Cress,

which is a full...

I know.

Give it up for Winter's Cress.

It is a full 11-track holiday album that you can stream or purchase digitally right now on any major platform.

You can hear it.

That's Talison's lovely voice.

It's so good.

Plus!

You can pre-order vinyl editions of the album, including a deluxe edition signed by all of us with exclusive extras like vinyl sticker packs, a postcard, and a pack of festive Polaroid-style photos.

And you can pre-order now.

It's so fun.

We wore ugly sweaters.

It's great.

Pre-order now at the new home for Critical Rural Music, ScanlonShorthaltMusic.com.

Wow.

Every time you go to that website, I get 10 cents.

It is absurd this album exists.

And it's so

good.

It's quick moves.

It was a lot of fun.

Well,

that concludes our announcements.

Thankfully, we can actually get to the game.

Enough.

Sorry.

Semi, semi, sam.

I will destroy you when the game starts.

But no, as it is, Dagger Hearts, everyone begins the game with two hopes.

Make sure you mark that on your sheet if you haven't already.

I, as the GM, I'm going to be starting the campaign with one hope per or one fear per player.

So I got to start with a nice seven fear at my disposal.

Is that how that works?

That's how it works.

So that'd be fine.

What could possibly go wrong?

I don't like it.

But I think with that prep,

let's go ahead and jump into tonight's episode of

Critical Role.

Critical Role is sponsored by BetterHelp.

Look, there's a difference between venting to your GM and actually talking with a licensed therapist.

That's where BetterHelp comes in with clinically trained and licensed therapists.

They've been around for over a decade, helped millions of people, and out of 1.7 million client reviews, they've got a 4.9 rating.

Now, here's what I love about BetterHelp.

They help find a therapist that works for you so you can focus on your life's adventure.

You fill out a short questionnaire that helps identify your needs and preferences.

And if you aren't happy with your match, well, you can switch to a different therapist at any time.

It's fully online and you can pause your subscription whenever you need to.

With over 30,000 therapists, BetterHelp is the world's largest online therapy platform, having served over 5 million people globally.

As the largest online therapy provider in the world, BetterHelp can provide access to mental health professionals with a diverse variety of expertise.

Find the one with BetterHelp.

Our listeners get 10% off their first month at betterhelp.com/slash critical role.

That's betterhelp.com/slash critical role.

So, um, I was just parking my car and then I saw you, the Gecko!

Huge fan.

I'm always honored to meet fans out in the wild.

The honor is mine.

I just love being able to file a claim in under two minutes with the Geico app.

Well, the Geico app is top-notch.

I know you get asked this all the time, but could you sign it?

Sign what?

The app?

Yeah, sure.

Oh, that means so much.

Oh, it rubbed off the screen when I touched it.

Could you sign it again?

Anything to help, I suppose.

You're the best.

Get more than just savings.

Get more with Geico.

When you need eye-catching content fast, use Adobe Express, the quick and easy app to create on-brand content.

Make visually consistent social posts, presentations, videos, and more with brand kits and lockable templates.

Edit, resize, and even translate, all in just a click.

And use Firefly-powered generative AI features to create commercially safe content with confidence.

Start creating with Adobe Express at adobe.com slash go slash express.

Lowe's knows you've got a job to do and we help get it done.

With the My Lowe's Pro Rewards program, eligible members save more with volume discounts on qualifying orders through a quote of $2,000 or more.

Join for free today lowe's we help you save offer can't be combined with any other discount contract and or special pricing exclusions more terms and restrictions apply details at lowe's.com slash terms subject to change

all right

the holidays have come

A time of reflection on the year past

and hope for the year to come forward.

A time that gathers friends and family, a reminder of the communities we cherish.

And during the latter half of the 1980s, within the sleepy Midwest town of Springvale Springs,

the holidays have also meant chaotic shopping, slushy road conditions, and small-town drama.

But this night, the eve before Christmas itself, a gentle snowfall blankets the river-wound little town as the afternoon sun glows gently behind the darkened clouds.

this afternoon before the eve of Christmas carries a unique tension alongside the joyful excitement and anticipation as neighbors play pleasantries while silently judging each other's decorations.

Businesses prepare to close for the evening while parents dash around for last-minute presents.

And then the hush begins to fall.

Across the water tower, the playground, the arcade, the mall, Christmas Eve.

is nearly here.

But it is here in this suburban cul-de-sac within a modestly decorated home, this very, very nice abode that belongs to Mayor Cameron Blake and his newly wedded bride, Iris Ginsburg Blake.

A central abode which is a beacon of hope for Springvale Springs.

And it is here that they've invited a small gathering of friends to this.

As soft incandescent light-colored strings reflect across the snow,

the first group begins to arrive to the door.

But here within, the house itself, gentle music plays, the rooms of antique furniture that is rarely ever used or sat upon, all arranged perfectly to present an air of affluence and importance.

After all, it is the mayor.

We have Bethany walking in to check in on her father, Laura.

If you would mind describing Bethany for me.

Oh.

Thank you.

I think everybody knows about Bethany.

She's homecoming queen, prom queen, straight A student, president of the student council.

She really most popular, obviously most popular girl.

Perfectly placed hair, perfectly manicured nails.

Everything is presented perfectly.

Just as her father wants.

And describe her father for me in his current.

Cam Blake.

He is 6'2 ⁇ .

Salt and pepper, hair, a million-dollar smile that he doesn't tell anyone he paid for.

And this holiday, he is wearing a Christmas sweater.

He always has a new one for every holiday party, a tie underneath it, and his slacks with his perfectly polished shoes.

As you walk in, you see him brushing what looks like some sort of a brief mess across the front of it.

Oh, my goodness.

Bethany, Bethany, would you be a doll and get the hydrogen peroxide?

It seems I've messed myself.

Of course, Father.

Thank you, dear.

Could you please get your mother for me as well?

I'd like to see her in the den.

My mother's not here,

Dad.

Bethany, please, please, could you just for one night be civil, be respectful, be the wonderful daughter you are, and do not embarrass me.

I'll get Iris.

As he brushes himself off, the doorbell rings and he rushes off and darts.

As we come around the corner into the kitchen, we see preparing what looks like a massive turkey that was probably delivered not too long ago.

The foil being pulled off on one side, the smell of it beginning to permeate throughout the kitchen.

You see Iris Ginsburg Blake.

If you wouldn't mind describing your mother for me, well,

It will be hard for this audience to picture her.

But

she is so cute.

She's 5'6.

She's got dark brown hair.

She is cooking up a storm, and she's always the center of attention.

She's a busy body, and she's always got a big smile and telling a joke.

And right next to her is me.

You are now walking into the kitchen as she kind of looks over her shoulder.

Ralph, if you'd be so kind as to help me place the the rest of the table, I don't know how this works.

Okay.

Happy to, Mom.

I think, I mean, I'm so used to having matzo ball soup and lighting

the Hanukkiya, but

I guess this is how the goes do it.

I mean,

do you baste first and then you cook it?

Or do you cook it first and then you baste it?

Let's Let's just baste it twice.

That sounds fine to me.

Look, for the both of us tonight, we'll just watch and learn as best we can.

And if I come barging in the room,

hello, dear.

My dad wants you.

Oh,

hi, Bethany.

Wow, that's a really great outfit you've got on.

And did you...

Did you change your hair?

It looks so

shut up, Chod.

Thank you, fair daughter.

I'll go see to your father.

And she exits the room with a kind of a glance over her shoulder and huffs out of the kitchen, leaving the two of you alone amongst the undelivered spread.

So, um, do we...

I didn't see a stocking for you.

Aren't you going to hang a stocking?

My mom always hung the stockings.

Well, we could start a new tradition tonight.

I just

really want to get this whole Christmas thing and really...

I'm sort of schfitzing over it a little bit.

Yeah.

Maybe we could go into our parents' room and get some of your mom's skanky underwear and hang it from the fireplace instead.

I just think that they're really in love and I think we should support that.

And, you know,

they're a family and I guess we are too, although not blood related.

So, you know, technically

anything could happen legally.

I better go.

You really should.

I'll hang a stocking for you.

Do you hang them on the tree or I'm so new at you?

Get out!

Okay!

As you dart out, you see in kind of the central foyer of the household,

your mother, Iris, and your new father, Mayor Cameron Blake.

She's been like washing off the front of his shirt, but they're both like locked into full deep kiss.

As the doorbell rings again, and they both kind of, Jocelyn Wake, she kind of brushes his shoulder and then darts off as he turns.

Ralph, would you be so kind as to greet our first guests for the evening?

Sure, Mr.

Blake.

I mean, Dad.

There it is.

It won't take long, son.

Happy to.

Welcome to the Blake home.

The Ginsburg, the Bader Ginsburg-Blake home.

I'm Ralph Bader-Ginsburg.

Blake.

No relation.

Oh.

You're doing good.

You're doing good.

Here.

Now, ready?

On three.

One, two, three.

As they open the door there, there are two kids there awaiting first as their parents are still getting their materials out of the car.

Let's go ahead and start over here.

Tristan, if you wouldn't mind describing yourself.

Yeah, I'm Tristan Beasley.

I'm one of the older kids at school.

I'm the same age as Bethany.

Got a big head of curly hair.

He's cute.

He doesn't really realize it or understand it.

And he's very confident, and you're never really sure why.

He's tall, he's gangly.

He has a way too long scarf on and a big smile.

And he's got his arm around his kid sister's massive puffy jacket.

Hey, happy holidays!

Sorry, the doorbell's not broken, isn't it?

We knocked for a bit too.

We knocked for like three minutes.

We were just trying to get to the household.

Not a worry.

I mean, we are a little early.

That's fine.

Gwenny, was it?

Yes, Gwenny.

Gwenny, thank you.

Guinevere.

Guenevere beason.

Call me Gwenny.

Sorry, I'll let you talk.

Of course, no worries.

You're doing great.

Come on inside, and I'll go ahead and greet your parents as they come around.

Gwenny, if you mind describing yourself.

Yes, Gwenny is 13 and three-quarters,

and she's got pigtails.

She's a kid sister of Tristan.

She's, she's just, and she's got headgear.

And, you know, she's just, she's figuring it out.

Love it.

I feel all over myself here.

I have that effect on people.

Yeah, you do.

Well, welcome to our, welcome to our home.

Hey,

hey, Ralph.

Hey.

What's up?

Hey, Bethany.

Hey, Ralph.

Hey.

I've got a cool icebreaker.

How about a joke?

I love jokes.

What's Madonna's favorite sauce?

Hollandaise!

Laughter comes barreling into the door as you watch both of the Blake parents stepping through with the Beasleys.

There, you see Walton Beasley, the father of these two teenagers, step through himself.

His kind of like coiff-puffed blonde hair with like a wave to it.

He himself has a scarf that almost matches that of his sons.

He's got the little bit of the artistic goatee and these like nice kind of European leather gloves about him.

And he has that like, my god, this place looks amazing, doesn't it?

I'm just so glad you invited us over, Mayor.

We've for a long time just dallied around in social circles, so it really is an honor, isn't it?

And he turns over to his wife, Phaedra, who has this like long, dark brunette hair that is so many curls that almost flows like a fairy as she walks.

And she's like, Indeed, it's so nice to be amongst

culture.

What

are those panties on the fireplace?

That's the meat.

Those are my mom.

He watches Iris turns out and goes,

That's probably a mistake.

And she darts off, and he watches

Walton leans over onto the mayor and goes, You dog.

I guess it's going to be a good Christmas Eve.

Sweeters.

Yes, of course.

Okay, Dad, save it for the house.

They step on into the rest of the chamber as the door closes behind.

Out on the driveway, we do catch one,

what looks like a bicycle that is riding up along the side.

Who do we see riding that bicycle over here?

Oh,

that makes sense.

So

I'm Dylan.

You kind of get a sense I've kind of got long

shaggy hair, like definitely like an Army surplus jacket that may have never been washed.

It's hard to tell.

Jeans that are ripped up and are hanging on.

It's cool.

And kind of has an air of like just no matter where he goes, somehow it's loitering all the time.

And he's biking up and he's got like a small gift bag

with him as he's as he's biking up and kind of just lets the bike drop and keeps walking.

Hey, Mr.

Blake, Mayor, can I call you Cam?

As you're shouting as the door slams and you're just kind of not even paid attention, you're still kind of out in the driveway.

Was that Dylan?

I think it was.

Yeah.

Was he even invited?

I mean, I think he knows about them.

I probably invited him, I think.

What?

You invited him?

Well, I invited a couple people.

I know this is not my house.

I just, it's the holidays.

You know what?

That is in keeping in the spirit of

Mazeltov and of

spirit of Mazeltov.

Yeah, it's just spreading the joy of the season, and we should let him in.

Thanks, Ralph.

I open the door.

Bethany, hi, a Merry Christmas for you.

Merry Christmas for me.

Yeah, yeah.

You know, I look inside.

What is it?

It's a series of books that are tied up with a ribbon with a little

looks like little comic books, maybe?

Yeah, I thought so.

What'd you get?

Dylan, you shouldn't have.

I had to literally punch texts.

Nothing, it's beer.

Go away.

Lots of beer.

I'm going to run to my room.

She's so mysterious.

It's great to see you all.

Hi, Gwen.

Thank you.

Oh, hey, how are you?

Oh, are you kidding?

Look at this place.

It's great.

I'm gonna like walk over, sit down, put my feet up on whatever.

Take a seat, relax.

Do you want anything to drink?

Oh,

wait, I'm supposed to do that.

We'll do it, Ralph.

Okay.

Dylan, man, did you bring presents for everybody or?

Oh, I didn't know who was going to be here.

So I just decided now.

Ralph?

Hey.

Hey, hey.

Hey.

We're cool, right?

What do you think?

I mean, come on.

Of course, we're cool.

Yeah.

Yeah, we're cool, right?

Okay.

What's the matter?

I feel like there's tension.

And I love some tension.

No, no, everything's fine.

I'm just plotzing a little bit here.

And

you know what?

I'm going to go get us.

There's past duo d'oeuvre.

So I'll be right back, okay?

Wait, Ralph.

What?

Drew me like a little bit of alcohol.

Ow.

When we just got here,

it's up.

Okay.

Sorry, I'm just getting really excited.

My mom usually has me, lets me take a couple sips of Manischevitz.

I could get that for you.

What's that?

It's really good.

Why don't you show me?

Oh, there's a heavy knock at at the door suddenly.

Oh, I should get that.

It's my house.

Hello, welcome to the Blake residence.

I'm Ralph.

Hi.

Hi.

Riley, if you wouldn't mind describing yourself.

You see a disheveled teen girl, maybe 16, just turned 16.

She's a little sweaty because she just grinded a sick curb on her skateboard and

did not dress up for this at all and kind of just has this air about her at any given time that she doesn't want to be here or talking to you.

Hey, oh,

what was your name again?

Ralph Bader Ginsburg.

Ralph Blake.

Right.

I've seen you around school.

Yeah,

you're the new kid, right?

Yeah.

Wow, and you're like from

like Korea or something?

No, no.

Well, I'm from the United States, but um,

shit.

Wait, it's rolling down the street.

Hang on.

No, don't.

Come back.

It's a long driveway.

Steep.

Are we about to learn an amazing lesson?

Oh, no.

Sorry.

I come back scrum upstairs where I was hiding my comic books.

Hey, this is Ryan.

Oh, Sean.

Hey, how are you?

You used to live in Berlin, right?

Isn't that your deal?

That's what it was.

Yeah, but my my dad was stationed over there.

She's fluent in German.

I'm not.

I'm not.

Yeah, I've kind of traveled around, you know.

He's actually a major in

nuclear engineer.

So we're.

He's kind of babysitting the nuclear silo.

But so you're not fluent, but you're you like semi-semi-fluent?

You know, a little bit?

Yeah, I can say fic dish.

What's that mean?

Fuck you.

Oh.

He just asked what it means.

Yeah.

How did she get an invite?

This is such lame.

Children, children.

Holy shit, this house.

What the fuck?

Where is everyone coming from?

Oh, hey, Rebecca.

Bethany.

Bethany.

What's up?

Who and who?

You're more than welcome to join.

Are you rich?

Yes.

Cool.

How did you hear about the party?

Oh, Lynn invited me.

Uh, Gwen.

Oh,

you can call me whatever you want.

I don't respond to it.

Okay.

I told her, because she's new to town, and I just figured,

you know, in the spirit of the holidays, we should all just be nice to each other.

Yeah, we're all mischbucha here.

That's what I said.

Is that German?

Sort of.

That's a touchy subject.

At which point, Iris Blake is in the doorway entering the foyer and it's like, oh my, so many more arrivals.

Are your parents coming as well?

Oh, no.

My dad, Mayor Hole, Major Hole, sorry, He um

he's working the night shift at the silo.

Uh, Walton Beasley walks in.

He was like, really, uh, more than merry.

Damn.

What?

He's growls.

Let's give it a look.

Hey, the children are being obnoxious, dear.

Wanders back into the chamber.

Tristan, your dad's weird.

Have you met me?

Met you?

I mean,

your reputation precedes you.

I saw you in a non-skating, non-musical version of Starlight Express, and

you were fantastic.

Oh, you've been to Grundlebrush's Playhouse.

I have, yeah.

Yeah, I'm starting out there.

You know, I'm like first assistant dramaturgist and slash janitor at the theater, and I'm kind of working my way up.

And I, you know, I'm just over in the background now, but they're doing Richard III in the coming season in January.

Oh, and you're in it.

I'm going to be.

Did you say you're turgid?

Not that time.

Children, children, please.

I'm glad you're all here.

And he watches Mayor Cameron Blake walks in once more and have a justice left out.

It is indeed the Christmas season, and we're happy to host all of you who need a home this eve and a bit of a bit of community.

So this...

Our home is your home.

Open to all who want a place to stay, to cherish, and celebrate the holiday season.

Bing-bong!

Who else is here?

He

goes to go for the door, opens it up, and what you see waiting across the way is the sun's like setting in the distance.

You see a man in his early 30s, kind of greasy dark hair, kind of in an Elvis-like coif.

He's wearing a white

button-up gas station attendant shirt, but he has it open with a wide lapel of it, and he's like, Hey, brother, how you doing?

The mayor goes,

Pelvis.

I wasn't

I wasn't where you were invited into our abode.

Pelvis, of which the

Blake children probably know, is the estrange younger brother of the mayor who

hasn't really shown up much around the household, but seems to be kind of cool with a little weirds.

He's carrying a large cardboard box that kind of sets on the side.

He lifts up and kind of things rattle around inside.

He goes, Well, you know, just I got nowhere else to go around here in town, and since it's the holiday season, I figured I'd go ahead and bring a few gifts.

I got some got some keeks takes, got some presents for some of the kids, and

I actually got some old family heirlooms here to pass on to him.

So, I don't know.

I think it'd be a good idea to get the family around.

He looks past him towards the kids, like nodding for approval.

Yeah, can I take your box for you?

Oh, yeah, by all means.

Uncle Pelvis, thanks.

Hey, Pelvis.

Wow.

What's up, Billy?

Good to see you too.

Oh, I didn't didn't realize it was a thing.

Hey, Pelvis!

Hi, Gwenny, Gwenny.

All right.

Who's that?

We got a good gathering here.

I'm going to go ahead and get a beer.

And Cameron,

there are no beers here, unfortunately.

This is a sober family affair.

What?

What?

You could have mentioned that.

I didn't know.

Riley kind of leans into Gwynney.

Is his name Pelvis or Elvis?

Or was it Elvis and he's and people just call him Pelvis or is he Pelvis and he's trying to make Elvis happen?

See, we don't know.

Okay.

Just curious.

Yeah, it's a good question, though.

Yeah.

So I was just parking my car and then I saw you.

A Gecko.

Huge fan.

I'm always honored to meet fans out in the wild.

The honor is mine.

I just love being able to file a claim in under two minutes with the Geico app.

Well, the Geico app is top-notch.

I know you get asked this all the time, but could you sign it?

Sign what?

The app?

Yeah, sure.

Oh, that means so much.

Oh, it rubbed off the screen when I touched it.

Could you sign it again?

Anything to help, I suppose.

You're the best.

Get more than just savings.

Get more with Geico.

The growing demand for content means more chances for off-brand work getting out there.

Adobe Express can help.

It's the quick and easy app that gives your HR, sales, and marketing teams the power to create on-brand content at scale.

Ensure everyone follows design guidelines with brand kits and lock templates.

Give them the confidence to create with Firefly generative AI that's safe for business.

And make sure your brand is protected, looks sharp, and shows up consistently in the wild.

Learn more at adobe.com slash go slash express.

Lowe's knows you've got a job to do and we help get it done.

With the My Lowe's Pro Rewards Program, eligible members save more with volume discounts on qualifying orders through a quote of $2,000 or more.

Join for free today.

Lowe's.

We help you save.

Offer can't be combined with any other discount contract and or special pricing.

Exclusions, more terms, and restrictions apply.

Details at lowe's.com slash terms.

Subject to change.

At Marisa's, we're all about great jeans.

You know, the ones that fit you just right?

The ones that simply make you feel good.

Because you don't just wear jeans, you live in them.

Find great jeans starting at $29.90 in stores and at marisas.com.

As you all gather into the family dinner on the massive, immaculately decorated by other people that were hired to do so, Tree,

a number of presents are scattered about.

Conversation that bores you to tears continues to drag you through the early part of the evening.

Eventually, dinner begins to be served, and the night mostly seems to be the adults talking about business and politics and money and all the obnoxious little secrets they like to tell about the other neighbors around.

But kind of relegate you all to the kids' side of the table as you do so.

I lean.

Sorry, I lean forward to Dylan.

There actually is alcohol in the basement.

In the basement?

Yeah.

Can we get there without being seen?

I know how to get down there without being seen.

Sorry, I can read lips.

How do you know that?

I have been here so many times.

Like, two.

Everywhere invited?

Were you invited?

Yeah.

As some of the smaller gifts are kind of presented after dinner, and eventually Pelvis kind of pulls up the remains of the box.

He goes.

Now, I don't mean to like take over here for a second, but while y'all been doing your family thing I've been I've been looking into our family history a little bit and found out that I don't know if y'all remember we had a sweet little grandmother

on the Blake side of the family old Oma Sigrid

a few generations back left a bunch of things that were just kind of floating in what's that called a repro or something

but uh oh reprobate reprobate that's the one yeah uh

well

I figured it'd be a good thing for y'all to have I kept a few things myself that seemed to have a little history to the family.

And she kind of pulls out like an old tattered mug and like what looks like a fake pearl necklace that looks nice, but you know, it also looks a bit tarnished.

Sets it down.

The one thing he kind of pulls out that looks really cool, he goes, ah, now this here looks like a jewelry box, but I can't get it open for the life of me.

And he pulls out this...

rather large, strange-looking wooden box, about one foot by one foot, that is intricately carved.

You can see where the four feet of it sit.

They seem to curl up as hands that clutch the edge of each corner of the box.

Amongst them along the side, it's like these like swirls that form like holly leaves and berries and like beautiful bits of vine that seem to creep up, just carved into the wood itself.

There's other details in there, but even at a glance, you can't quite make out the specifics of it.

And it all seems to reach up to the handle at the top of the box.

And there's a massive, it's like a tarnished iron lock that sits over the front with a an open keyhole on it that is so cool it's ancient artifact can i touch it

by all means i've been trying for a while

pandora's box does it shake does it rattle is there a keyhole or a contraption there is there is a keyhole in it um

however it it doesn't rattle when you shake it but it is far heavier in your grasp than you expected it to be uh you know what go ahead and roll an instinct roll for me.

First roll.

First roll.

Oh, no, no.

Okay, okay, okay, okay, okay, okay.

Wait, I gotta go.

There's only two guys.

I know, no,

I'm choosing the right ones, okay?

Oh.

Aw, okay.

Well, I rolled a 20, but with fear.

20 with fear.

Okay, good to know.

So, as you're clutching the box here for a second, you get this kind of odd, ominous sense as your hands touch it.

You can almost feel like the vines begin to move and shift.

You can glance into the interior of the woodwork itself,

the fine, kind of darkened texture of it seeming to almost move and writhe.

This warm, fuzzy feeling seems to fill you inside.

It's almost joyful, like the onset of a sneeze that never goes away.

Looking upon it, the hands themselves seem to almost clutch harder on the edges, and you swear you can almost hear faint music in the back of your mind mind sourcelessly.

And then, as you release it, you're back at the table for a second and kind of set the box down.

That was odd.

Are you okay?

Yeah, this box is just

weird.

Well, you were shaking for a second.

Yes, there are fumes on it.

Mark a stress for you.

Oh, come on.

He looks stressed.

A lot of the varnish from back then was like really toxic.

Yeah.

Yeah, don't lick that.

Is that let it be?

Oh, how old is this box?

I don't know.

I'll try to get it a praise.

Say it's probably a few hundred years.

Say it's of a German make.

That's where

Omar Sigrid was from.

It's our family background.

You see Cameron and be like,

indeed.

And we've made a better life for ourselves here in the U.S.

Hearing this, can Riley kind of look over and kind of poke at it?

And can I use my ability?

I spend time overseas to check it out.

My experience.

Sure.

Go ahead and roll a knowledge roll and then add that bonus to it.

You know, spend a hope to do so.

Okay.

I will do so.

Spending a hope.

Okay, so that's going to add

plus three, because my knowledge is zero.

Or sorry, plus two.

Ooh, icky.

Okay, that's going to be a 12 with fear.

12 with fear.

Yikes.

I'll go ahead and take a fear for that.

So you,

as you stare into this box, you can, there are definitely like

deeply set, it looks like letters, but they're not language that you understand necessarily.

They're like older runic carvings, things that reminiscent of like northern European make or even like old Germanic maybe.

But definitely seems to have a holiday to it and elements.

You can see where like the holly and the vines, it's just old.

It's definitely old.

But you yourself, you've been staring into it too deeply, feel like the sweat beginning to pull on your brow and you take the stress as well.

As this is happening, the rest of you kind of find yourselves kind of leaning in towards the box before Iris, who's halfway in opening a present and no one's paying attention, goes, honey, they're not looking.

Cameron goes up.

Everyone, I think that's enough distraction now from my

brother.

We'll take care of these things later.

He picks up the box and takes some of the things, puts it in the bag.

We'll finish up dinner here and go on with the rest of the evening.

You kids can have fun in your room upstairs.

The adults will have our own time in the parlor.

And he goes and begins to take the box down into the basement.

I'm hearing a

downstairs as Iris opens her presence and goes, Oh my god, it's a blouse.

Looks expensive.

We shift on to later in the evening now as the parents are laughing off into the den and the rest of you have kind of been relegated off into the children's side of the party.

It's long past the sunset and the night stars are out.

Dylan!

What?

I brought my slingshot.

Do you want to go shoot some squirrels outside?

No, no, this...

I feel like this sucks and I want to fix this.

It is not time to be distracted.

Squirrels are great.

I came for beer.

i

am so disappointed i thought your family was rich enough to have beer we do we have a whole refrigerator of beer down in the basement come on

i lead the group down

me

the door to the basement's locked well try to you don't have a key yes of course i have a key no no where does the key

can i look around the kitchen for the key

uh sure if you want to.

Go ahead and make an instinct roll for it.

Another one.

Try and glance around for where maybe it is.

I mean, you can look, but this is what we have Dylan for.

Is there a phone in the kitchen?

Oh, there is indeed.

It's a phone.

It's like a fixed to the wall.

I'm going to walk right by you while you do this.

I rolled a nine with hope.

Okay, well, you gained a hope.

However, you are kind of staring around and like moving the drawers and pushing through.

There is just all matter of strange objects, devices.

Oh,

I forgot to tell you, my mom rearranged the drawers in here.

She thought that this system was more organized than your mom had it.

Did you see where your mom put the key to the basement?

No, I didn't.

I didn't see, but I do think that this system is a little bit better.

Why are you looking at me like that?

That's a look of murder.

Dylan,

this party needs more delinquency.

Hold on.

And I'm calling for some beer.

You're calling for beer?

Wait, you have the whole fridge.

Can I try to get it?

I'm wait?

I'm letting the phone ring.

I'm calling the guy I have.

So eventually the line picks up.

Hey, Tanner,

where are you?

And what do you look like as you answer your phone?

This is Tanner.

Standing inside of a phone booth in my family-owned dumped.

This is Tanner.

Speak.

Hey, Trash Boy.

Party at the Blake's house.

It's minimum two six packs.

Are you in?

Hey, Big D.

First of all, it's not Trash Boy.

It's just trash.

Second of all, two six packs.

That's going to run you a fat 20 note.

I need a Jefferson.

Can you wait till New Year?

New Year?

Yeah, I'm a little short right now.

Yeah, all right.

But the big is steep.

I'm just gonna tell you right now.

Two six packs.

I'll be there in two shakes of a lamb's tail.

What's wrong with that kid?

So.

Did you invite Tanner trash to the house?

No, I invited beer and it comes with a side of tanner.

It doesn't take too long for eventually a soft knock at the window of the kitchen.

And what do they see standing outside the window, Tanner?

They see a big fog spot on the window, and then a dick being drawn in

with a bunch of spiky pubes and some spirk, spurt, spurt.

And then I see Ginsburg inside.

And I'm like, hey, Ginsburg, open the door.

Oh, look, he drew a picture of your uncle groin.

I quickly go over and open the door.

Tanner, what are you doing here?

What do you mean?

I'm on a delivery.

Do you have my my money or not, Ginsburg?

Me?

I don't.

My money.

You're.

Hey, Tanner.

Oh, hey, Tiffany.

It's Bethany.

Yeah, Bethany.

Yeah, how's it going?

I, uh...

Where's Dylan?

He's here.

Dylan.

Dylan.

Oh, what?

Oh.

Oh, my God.

You got it.

Oh, I owe you so big.

It has been so lame.

Thank you.

Oh, hey, Tanner.

What's up, Turd?

Art, did you come over for the holiday celebration?

For the what?

We're all hanging out.

Hey, hey, Tanner, are you coming in?

What's up, Hamlet?

Wait, did you bring Sadie thing?

Yeah, I brought two six-packs.

How many of you guys are there?

You should crawl through the window.

We split off in the adults.

We're just going to go to the back door, but there's a bunch of them.

Usually you come here a lot.

What are you guys dating?

Listen.

Wait, are you?

No way.

Like, I would ever date Tanner.

Oh, so you're single.

Wait.

Like, do you want to come in or what?

I mean,

I think you should come in.

Is the mayor inside?

Yeah.

Yeah, okay, I'll come in.

It's Christmas Eve.

You should probably go down the chimney.

So, Tanner, Tanner, describe what they see as you come into the home study.

See, Tanner Cotswall, also known as Tanner Trash, or just trash for short.

Tanner looks like he got held back about seven times.

He's a varsity football, wrestling, lacrosse, basketball, baseball, and swimming.

Has a little peach fuzz on his lip and probably shouldn't be in school anymore.

But also, there's a skunky odor emanating from his hoodie.

What's that smell?

That smell?

What smell?

Are you a narc?

No, I just smell something.

It kind of smells like a skunk.

Don't worry.

It's the dump.

You smell the dump.

Yeah.

Listen, one of those beers, by the way, is mine.

It's got my name on it.

Turd, why don't you grab me a brewski?

I'll see your name anywhere.

Just

do you see the one with the bottle cap on it?

There

you go.

It's about this time you notice at the edge of the doorway is Phaedra Beasley, the mother of both of you.

Kind of in her laced little dress, arms crossed, looking upon this display.

I immediately dive in front of Gwenny and fill the frame of the door so that mom can't see.

Hey, Ma!

Hi, children.

Looks like you're having a little party here.

We're just just hanging out.

Hi, Mrs.

Beasley.

Yeah, we're figuring out electives for next year at school.

You're not doing anything unsavory, are you?

No,

no, no, I'm shy.

No, Miss Beasley,

Miss Beasley.

You can trust us, okay?

Miss Beasley, you look fantastic tonight.

And I have a joke that you might like.

I'm going to use my experience called Class Clown to try to distract her with a joke.

Okay.

I'm going to say to her,

what's Mr.

T's favorite month?

April, fools!

Definitely roll presents roll.

Okay, that is with my bonus, that is a 21.

With hope.

With fear.

With fear.

Okay, so Markov, you're both using your experience.

I'll go ahead and take that fear.

She leans in close to you and goes,

I'm sorry,

I don't get it here.

Oh, yeah, you don't.

Mr.

Cheese, this guy is on TV.

He's really cool.

I smell something.

Mom!

She sniffs in the air.

You start getting a little nervous.

Is it that skunk smell?

I believe that is it.

She looks over towards Tanner and walks forward towards you.

He ran over to the skunk outside!

Her, like, kind of fae dress kind of flows as she kind of beelines towards you like a ladriel intensely towards Frodo.

It's like

Is that an illicit substance I smell on your person Tanner?

How's it going Miss B?

Uh No, no, I just came from from wrestling practice and I haven't bathed and my gooch smells

You would be in very serious trouble if the man of this house learned that you had brought illicit substances into his home with his daughter.

Perhaps you need to get rid of it quickly.

Whoa,

Hamlet, your mom is fucking cool.

Sure, sure, Mrs.

B.

I just, you know, the skunk I ran over outside, there was this little baggie next to it.

I don't know.

How did that get in there?

I don't know, but make sure it's disposed of properly and, you know, don't put it in the brownies.

What even is that?

Are you at Christmas, children?

Oregano.

And she exits the chamber.

Dang.

Did she take your whole stash?

No.

Whoo, that was close.

Winnie, you and I are probably gonna have to sleep downstairs in the den in sleeping bags tonight.

Okay.

Mom and dad are gonna.

Oh, yeah, that.

Yeah.

I feel like whenever I smell that smell, they're usually up all night.

Wait, wait, your parents party?

Hello?

Mrs.

Beasley, our mother, is the sex education teacher.

That makes so much sense!

I just thought she was crazy wise.

Wait, wait, wait.

Were your parents hitting on our parents?

Oh, they're definitely into some swinger shit.

I mean, they don't do that anymore.

Dude, it's written all over them.

What?

I don't think.

I think.

You hear laughter from upstairs.

And the skunk smell gets stronger.

Damn.

I mean, her curriculum is so comprehensive.

That's so gross.

We gotta get out of here.

Yeah, no.

That's gross, but like, is this that kind of a house where like

people can't?

Let's go.

Hey, wait, Dylan.

Dylan, I brought a Polaroid.

Maybe we should just you know like

What what I mean that would be offensive and gross.

We should get out of here

Do you have the thoughts for their mom?

Yeah

Bethany

Bethany this conversation begins to dull into a

in the background as you look past the hallway that leaves the kind of kitchen window area and you see the light from the basement door that was previously locked just

open and spread against the hall.

Hey guys,

maybe

we can get away from the noise downstairs.

Basement time?

It looks like it's unlocked.

How'd you do that?

I don't know, maybe it was just stuck or something.

Yeah, let's go.

Bring the beer.

Sweet.

And the oregano.

You all quietly gather what materials you need from the kitchen and begin to quietly tiptoe down the basement stairs into the underneath of the household, where the laughter and conversation of the parental units amongst their separate holiday shenanigans gets more and more distant.

Oh, boy.

Here in the basement, you pass by the massive hot water heater thatself is kind of like dinging every five or ten minutes or so.

The pipes themselves running about.

You can see the massive piles of old rags and bundled up blankets and what looks like old toys from your childhood, both of your childhoods, kind of placed on different shelves.

You can see there's a looks like an old card table, maybe an ancient past in which your father used to host poker nights with his friends.

It's kind of gone to the wayside a bit.

It's covered with a sheet.

And there on top of it, you see the cardboard box that your uncle Pelvis had brought here earlier.

I go over to the box and I open it up.

No, seriously, you guys, this thing is weird.

What's in the box?

I don't know.

I can't open it.

We can't open it.

I could.

It gave a weird feeling, though.

When I was looking at it earlier, that lettering on it, it I mean, it kind of looks like German, but it's like bold.

It's not, I don't know, it's weird.

Doesn't German just look like English, except in like the wrong order?

No, they got some weird squiggly letters and like weird dots over some of them.

It's a little weird.

Yeah.

If you can open it, go for it.

Oh, Dylan can open anything.

We have him down to the dump, and every time we get a car dropped off, he gets the trunk open like that.

True story?

Yeah, and worst case scenario, Bethany, we'll just do what we did when we were so pissed about finals, and we went down to the dump and threw televisions in the air and let them break.

Yeah.

You know, every Christmas, my dad lets me go through the lost and found box at the mall and pick whatever I want or anything he confiscates.

That's so cool.

Security, and he had a lock pick set about two years ago.

I didn't bring it

because I was trying to respect the house.

What?

How far is your house?

It's on the other side of town, but I'll tell you, do you have like, I don't know, a hairpin or something?

All right.

I've got a thing called pick and pull, which gives me advantage on opening locks.

I'm going to get a beer.

And I'm going to spend a hope for one of my experiences.

Experiency adding, thanks.

I'm just going to make guy for this.

All right, so go ahead and roll a finesse roll for me and adding your, is it plus two for your experience?

It's a plus two, plus two.

Plus a D6 for your experience.

Plus a D6.

All right.

Let's go.

Come on.

Don't suck.

That doesn't suck.

That's pretty good.

11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19,

23, I think, with hope.

Whoa!

23 with hope!

Take your hope on that one.

Yeah.

As you kind of look at it for a second, fiddle with it.

And as your fingers are touching the outside of the box, you can feel that strange tingling sensation kind of travel through your fingers into your hand, hearing this like distant music.

It's odd.

It's like somebody had turned on the stereo system two houses down, far too loud.

But it's inviting.

And as you kind of inspect the lock, and it is a large lock, Whatever key this was built for was an old like thick iron key.

But to that point, you find the tumbler is not too difficult given your experience and opening all things you shouldn't.

You all kind of gather around quietly as you watch Dylan kind of get close, passing one, a second tumbler, and with each push, you almost swear you can see the hands on the side of the box beginning to relax.

Oh my god, the hands are relaxing!

I'm just very close to Dylan, just

loud breathing.

Your breath smells like bologna.

Can you please back off?

I just had a bologna sandwich!

Yeah, hold on, let me get it.

There's a little bit of it on your mouth, Gart.

Sorry.

And then as you hit the final

lock tumbler,

the box lid pops off

onto the ground.

As light begins to shh filter out from the inside of the box.

The entirety of the basement ceiling is now a lit, like a massive light is just shining onto it from below.

You all kind of stand back as the air leaves the room.

You feel like this warmth is now emanating, like a bonfire, has just suddenly flashed in the middle of the chamber, like your eyebrows might be burned off, but it's welcoming.

You hear music, you hear laughter, you hear the voices of song.

Get back, it's radioactive!

It's the commies!

Eureka!

As this happens, you watch as vines begin to curl out and wrap on the sides.

Holly bushes seem to expand, bright red berries almost appearing off the sides of the table.

The tables become part of this side.

I push Ralph behind me.

The lid that sits on the side.

You see the light as a glowing blue orb seems to appear from the inside, and with it, you watch as ribbons of light and color seem to just spill out and wrap around the

actual load-bearing pillars of of the area and begin to wrap around all of you.

This light seems to take almost a human shape, like the tiniest of beautiful humans, this kind of androgynous-looking humanoid fairy-like entity, this semi-translucent blue spirit seems to unravel, yawning.

Kamis are small.

As it unleashes its hands, the light gets brighter.

The vines shh shoot out across all of you, wrapping around you.

You find yourselves tethered, and you feel that warmth beginning to grow from within you, like a fire is about to burn you from the inside.

As it does, you suddenly start to shift and change.

Is this a Christmas thing?

Some alien ancient magic seems to take root within your actual physical selves and begin to turn you inside out.

Let's begin here.

Take the young one, she's still a virgin.

Oh, how do you know?

Riley.

So, each of you.

I have sex all the time.

No, you don't.

Everyone knows.

There's nothing.

Each of you.

Each of you.

Each of you have

envelopes in front of you.

Pull the one from Marisha to you.

Oh.

As Marisha, if you would describe how you

transform.

Oh, wait.

That's not me.

This is shit.

Wait.

Marisha, you already know yours.

Oh, I know.

But I just...

Okay, wait.

I have a paper for this.

I just want to be refreshing.

I'm waiting for you to describe it.

Okay.

So

you see Riley's cargo pants start to get shorter and shorter.

First, they're like high waters and then they go up to the knees and then they keep going as you see hooves start to elongate out from the bottom of her jeans.

Riley!

You know, her puffer jacket does the same thing as it gets shorter and shorter and her red bushy hair that's coming out from under her her hat starts to spread and it gets bushier and bushier and turns almost into a mane

as her arms start to elongate and then she kind of like cracks her head a little bit as her nose starts to elongate and turns into a reindeer skull and from out from the back of her ball cap antlers start to grow and start to reach the ceiling as you see and they almost start to catch some of the Christmas lights that manifest and start weaving in and out between her antlers.

And then you see

along her arms, almost

Nordic-style

art is starting to be sketched around her fur.

At which point, Tanner begins to feel this tether within him and begin to pull him into a strange new physical presence.

Tanner, would you mind describing your transformation as a best?

I scramble backwards in the basement.

I find a trash can nearby and I grab the metal lid.

I'm like, oh, what the fuck is...

And Tanner starts hitting the ground.

And as he's hitting the ground, his forearms start growing.

The muscles start adding to his arms and fur starts to grow.

His hoodie starts to split.

It turns into like these suspenders.

And all of a sudden, his red bandana turns into like a Santa hat.

And Tanner turns into this fucking silverback banging cymbal toy monkey.

What the fuck is happening?

Gwenny, as you're screaming, your voice seems to shout.

I'm gonna leave the basement!

As you turn to run, your legs seem to not be quite as sturdy as they were before.

What's happening?

What's happening?

Indeed, Gwenny, what is happening, if you wouldn't mind describing what you become?

Okay, as a transformation happens,

Quenny's eyes turn into just round, black voids of terror.

Quenny!

And she starts to shrink, but fills out into three round balls

of smoke

her head gear turns into this horrifying metal mouth

with arms poking out

terrifying

what the fuck

as you watch Gwenny partially actually melt in front of you and scream that uh Dylan if you wouldn't mind as you look down at your hands himself I

start to feel something weird in my mouth and I reach and it's there's these

teeth, these like tusks that are start growing out of my mouth and I look down and there's white hair that's starting to cover my hands and then my cheeks just start to kind of pulse and my

eyebrows pulse as my face changes and becomes this weird

simian

type and my hair gets really long and white everywhere.

My chain wallet starts to wrap around me.

Cheering in the screaming, Tristan joins the fray as you.

He's freaking out over his little sister is turning into a lump, and his body starts to elongate.

His arms get longer, his legs get longer.

He stretches up till his shoulders are pressing into the ceiling.

His clothes start to burst.

Everywhere as tufts of fur spread out on his chest, the pants split open, hulk style and horns grow up out of his head straight up and out to the side and his tongue elongates out till he turns into a ripped fucking Krampus.

Oh my God!

What?

Oh my god, look at my abs!

He's a teen wolf!

They're gonna cast me as Richard III, motherfucker!

As his tongue lashes around in the space, the energy of the magic spreading into the chamber.

Out of the corner of your eyes, you're so focused on yourself, you don't realize the massive icicles that are growing on the edges of the chamber and cutting up through the floor.

The growth of the strange ivy and vines and holly itself, turning the basement around you into a veritable dark forest.

As Bethany, what can we see?

I start running away and clutching at things, but as I do, I fall over and I realize my legs are slowly disappearing as my skirt gets longer and longer and I start shrinking more and more.

My body turns into kind of this bulbous sphere and my face starts cracking and turning into wood

as I realize I turn into a tree to

it.

It's a tree topper.

I try to flutter my stupid mesh wings and I take off from the ground just a little bit.

Your eyes are so scary.

And horror happened to her eyes.

In the middle of all this chaos, poor Ralph Bader-Ginsburg-Blake

screaming.

I'm screaming.

I just want to enjoy Christmas.

I just want to enjoy Christmas.

I just want to enjoy Christmas.

I just want Christmas.

And as I'm chanting, my acne, which, by the way, this is just makeup.

My acne starts to explode.

And green pus starts spewing out of all of my acne all over my face until my entire face erupts and becomes green.

And I shift and grow and turn into a large Grinch.

I just want Christmas for myself.

And I also kind of look like Gritty

Go flyers

as the immediate panic subsides into near hyperventilation and you're all looking across at each other in the middle.

The strange kind of blue fairy-looking spirit stands there smiling amongst all of you.

Ah, I'm free from the Eublenbach.

Ah, mein libachertagen,

Yeah, yeah, she said she said something for Tagen.

What?

She said Merry Christmas.

I'm pretty sure that means Merry Christmas.

All must be cheerful.

All must be in the spirit.

You are all beautiful, and I will make everything

just as beautiful.

I must call my friends.

No, the children must must be judged.

No, no!

No!

Takes off shattering outside of the barely visible basement window.

Bitch!

Then scatters off into the night air as you watch, like the still-growing ivy kind of curling out the window.

The spirit vanished into the night.

Tristan!

Ready!

You gotta say they're gonna sit the military on us!

We gotta get out of here!

You guys, my dad's gonna kill me!

I'm a fucking stoolman!

Wait a second!

Wait a second!

Why are you the only one who got hot or Tristan?

That's not fair!

It's not so fair!

I'm kind of okay with it.

We gotta come up with a plan!

I think you still look pretty good, Bethany.

Shut up.

Okay, okay.

Ginsburg acts real weird now, dude.

We gotta get out of here.

We gotta move.

Where?

Heron sees us.

What can we do?

Is there a window in this basement?

Or storm cellar doors?

There's the window the spirit shattered out of.

The lock still sits open in the central table.

Wait, is there anything else in the box?

You look inside, and it's just a still, like, plain wooden interior with the tiniest chain affixed to it.

A chain?

Like a broken chain?

Like a chain that may have held what was once a chain.

Oh, she was chained inside.

Is there any chance that a gorilla, a Krampus, and a true detective monster are gonna fit through the window?

Probably not.

I'm gonna flutter up the steps to the basement and peek out of the door.

As you head up the steps, which by the wall themselves now are overgrown and the door is partially pushed in from what looks like a tree is now rapidly growing out of the side of the wooden wooden frame.

You peer into the hallway, and you can see now, first off, the temperature has dropped significantly.

And as you glance inside, there are sheer walls of ice.

Like the interior of your house has, like, snap-frozen.

Good news, guys.

I don't think our parents are gonna kill us.

Bad news, I think our parents are probably monsters just like us.

Mom, the dad!

Aw, I don't want to go check.

They're probably in the middle of boning.

It's.

Oh, what if they fused?

No.

No.

I like my Polaroid.

Actually, maybe we should go check.

Yeah, that's all

crazy.

It is.

You guys head up the stairs.

And indeed, the interior of this gorgeous mayor's household has become this like nightmare wonderland with like cracking ice that seems to pierce out of the nearby windows.

You can see bits of green are growing out of wherever wood is exposed.

The center of the kitchen island is like pushed off to the side from what looks like an actual massive pine tree that's now pushing in real time, like

growing out of the floor and beginning to pierce the ceiling.

You push past and head to the parents' den upstairs where you heard the laughter as well.

The smell of weed is still strong from it as you kind of peek through the doorway, and the ice itself has pierced and coated the interior of this chamber.

Most of everything itself is locked in these massive kind of glacier-type ice, like monoliths.

And there you can see, indeed, the mayor Cameron Blake straddled by Phaedra Beasley.

Both

clothes on.

It looks like the night was just beginning, but they are frozen in ice.

And their eyes within the ice turned towards you, panicked.

Where's my mom?

Where's my mom?

You look on the other side.

And Walton Beasley is in the process of giving a nice shoulder massage to her mother.

Mom!

They are both also frozen in ice.

Her blouse is kind of off the shoulders a little bit.

But they're both looking panicked and their eyes also

roll over towards you within their ice coffins.

I see a blanket frozen in frost on the side.

Can I break it off and try to cover my mom?

Sure, allow.

Okay.

We gotta rescue them.

If they stay like this for long, they could They could die or something.

We gotta get them out of here.

We gotta solve this.

I immediately grab Ginsburg and everybody else and I start shoving them through the door, but my hands keep clapping, so it's like, clang, clang, clang, clang, clang, clang,

don't use your voices.

They can see us.

What if they know it's us?

How would they know it's us?

What do they know?

What's up?

Wait.

Do you think we're having a contact hike?

I heard that you think.

It's a good question.

There is a lot of smoke in the air.

I did.

I did say.

Say a lie.

Oh, Pelvis drugged us.

That's what happened.

We don't know a lot and the swag was in that 200-year-old box.

Okay, okay, hang on.

She said

that the blue fairy, she must have been like the spirit of Christmas or something.

She said, she said, Frohe

Windachten, I think.

What does that mean?

Merry Christmas!

Are you listening to yourself?

Merry Christmas to you, Katie.

And then she said something about Ublin.

What did she?

Can I, can I, what did she say, Matt?

You said it so fast.

I was so distracted.

She mentioned the

Ubellenbachs.

We know what that is?

Which I'll say,

because you know a little bit of German and the context of it, it means the cheerbox.

The cheerbox.

That's what she was in.

Yep.

Yep.

In Freufirtagen is

happy holidays.

Oh.

What is it?

What is it?

What was it?

But that doesn't tell us how to fix it.

No.

What am I supposed to do in the summer?

Winning.

We're going to solve this in a few months.

Freak it out.

Look, all we have to do is get the blue fairy back and put her back in the box that should contain all of the Christmas scariness, right?

Is there any fairy juice on the walls or Trace of I don't know how fairies move with the window?

What is going on?

She went out the window.

We gotta hit the town then.

Let's get outside and see where the trail goes because probably wherever she flies, that's where the worst of this is gonna be.

She said she was gonna go find her children or something like that.

What the fuck, children is she talking about?

I don't know.

I head down the stairs, but not like a human would.

I just like use my hand and my feet run up on the wall and I'm like,

audacious.

I just start barreling downstairs.

I'm gonna head for the front door and try and find the basement window to see if I can find any trace of the blue fairy.

Certainly.

All right, so you can head to the basement window and look around.

I mean, she's definitely absconded.

You very easily do see, though, as through the window, what was just a well-manicurted grass lawn you can't see through because now it's completely overgrown into a dark forest just beyond the glass.

Grab the box!

Okay, hang on, please.

Let me take a look at this.

May I use my gifted tracker ability to spend a hope?

Yes.

And then you have to tell me the answer to any number of questions.

Sound like a reindeer.

Any number of of questions?

Yeah, it's one for Hope.

Oh yeah, that's right, yeah.

So I'm going to spend one Hope to ask, which direction did she go?

So you step outside of the front door of the household to get a better look at the neighborhood and the path she was going.

And indeed, the entire household has like a slow-growing dark German forest beginning to consume it from the outside.

And you see a path, a trail of where it would have moved through the neighborhood.

These little streets and homesteads themselves are now being consumed as well by these massive trees.

You watch streams of lights begin to apperate.

All these little lights begin to dully glow from beyond the needles.

You see shards of ice growing up around.

And what was once a dull gray sky was a gentle snow begins to thicken.

And the wind begins to pick up with more of a chill.

You spend a hope, and you're asking where it went?

Yeah.

From where you sit, which would be to the right, the northeast of Creepy Miss Springs House,

you gather that it is is likely traveling in the direction of.

Actually, roll a d6 for me.

See where it was going.

Roll a d6.

All right.

Man, I do not trust anything German.

Five.

Five.

Okay.

All right.

It is.

Heading pretty far north, actually.

It's heading in the direction of the water tower.

Okay.

You see, like in my antler, or like under my reindeer skull, my eyes kind of flicker a little bit, and it's almost like a night vision that almost kind of cues in

Riley's head.

And she knows the way.

Guys,

follow me.

And as she starts to clomp forward, she hits a patch of black eyes and just goes,

I love that song.

Wait, oh, wait.

And then I turn around and

I look for my skateboard that I left on the front porch.

It looks a little different.

Oh.

It's a sled.

Okay.

King.

Wait, did we grab the box?

Yes.

Who grabbed the box?

Tanner grabbed the box when we went down there because I screamed it at him.

All right, so go ahead and mark down that you have

the Ubell box.

I got the box.

And you're just pinching it between two giant symbols?

Yeah.

This is where lacrosse comes in handy.

Perfect.

Maybe, oh, maybe we can shove it inside Gwen's snow.

Go for it.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Take a big breath.

Super.

And just kind of like, it's like pushing into

the ocean.

It doesn't hurt.

It feels comfortable.

If anything, it gets too cool.

I feel anything.

Great.

Wow.

I put one hoof on my toboggan and then I use the other hoof to start to start pushing and I start leading the way north.

Great.

You all follow behind Riley.

I'm going to flutter up.

This is like my mesh wings are really shit at flying.

So I'm going to flutter as hard as I can and land on top of of one of Tristan's horns.

And as I pass a frozen car window, I'm like, God, my pecs are so choice.

Like a 12-pack.

All right, let's go.

Okay.

Following down Easterly Lane up towards where the bridge crosses the river that winds through Spingdale Springs, you can see the edges of the bridge itself are encased in shards of ice, and the river below has become just glacial, frozen, immovable ice in both directions.

You can see what looks to be one sort of a smaller vessel that was probably coming through carrying materials down the river that's just frozen and locked like partially out of the water itself, kind of its hanging lantern light just kind of glowing in the distance.

You can see one car that was coming across the road itself is like pushed up by the ice and it's partially encased.

You continue past the bridge towards the direction of the water tower.

And there you just barely make out over the tree line that surrounds the city this pale, like kind of bluish glow with kind of like figure eights over the horizon

before vanishing into the trees around the base of the water.

Dylan, you know the water tower, right?

Because you because you tagged it.

I mean,

I've tagged a lot of things.

I don't.

I mean, it says Dylan right on the top of the

water.

In seven-foot letters.

That could have been anybody.

I mean, we can head that way.

There's

the like old car cemetery right nearby.

We can try and get some covered.

No, no, no, I saw that.

She went that way.

She went towards the tower.

We gotta go to the tower.

I'm not going first.

I can't go in the water tower.

We don't want to go in the water tower.

Tristan, go.

You have like so many pecs.

All right, I'll do it.

Ah, wait, let me get off your horn first.

Okay, so are you all trekking towards the water tower?

Yeah, the charge?

Wherever you go, I'll lead the way as the enforcer.

Okay.

Tongue just swinging side to side.

It's like a foot-long fruit roll-up.

Are you all relining or are you going stealthily?

Oh, shall we stealth it?

What is it?

What does the blue light look like it's doing?

Is it flying around or is it staying there?

The blue light you saw like figure eight around like in the base of the water tower and then vanish through the tree line near the base of it.

You're not.

Yes, we gotta go.

We don't want to lose it.

Yeah, we gotta go.

Yeah, get it quickly.

Fuck still.

Okay.

All right, all right.

Going.

As we're going, by the way, as we left the house,

I grabbed a handful of candy canes from the dish, and I've just been eating them like just non-stop.

I just need more Christmas.

Anything

like a muppet.

Perfect.

I love it.

None of it's actually being swallowed, it's just breaking in the mouth and falling out.

Charging across the bridge and coming to the outside of the water tower, you can see like there's the heavy tree line around it and the numerous abandoned cars that kind of are scattered around the base.

The chain link fence is pushed over in places.

Elements other cut around it, but you can see the tree line is just now growing.

You could see like these odd, almost like briar-like growths out of it.

That instead of thorns, there's holly bushes kind of

hopping out of it.

And the faint glow of like little candles.

and elements of odd, almost like natural Christmas light strength sort of operating out of nothing, curling around the trees, giving it a hauntingly beautiful theme, like an amalgamation, an alien interpretation of a nightmare Christmas.

And as you get closer to you, you can see like the lights themselves, like slowly wrapping up the outer poles of the massive water tower itself.

No current sign of

the spirit, but its presence is definitely changing the landscape.

Okay.

How do you want to approach this?

Yeah, how do you want to do this?

I need direction, motivation.

Am I going to use the box capture the thing?

Or do I just scrap her by the neck?

Yeah, yeah.

This is

you're...

This is death of a salesman.

Okay.

I'm Willie Loom and I can work without.

Yeah, and you're tired of the road.

You're tired of the road, and you just want to...

I never saw Death of a Salesman.

You don't know what you're talking about.

Okay, no, no, this is that brand new show that just came out, Les Miserab.

And

you're Jean-Valjean,

and you stole a loaf of bread, and Jofier is after you.

And I don't know where this is going, but I really like that show.

Revolution!

It's so good!

It's good.

I'm going to spend a fear here.

Oh, no.

And you watch as

this blizzarding kind of, or not blizzarding yet, but the growing storm of snow and wind is picking up around you, out of nowhere,

a bolt of lightning strikes from the clouds somewhere between the thicket of trees before you, and you see a flash of flame and a bit of cinder.

Oh, shit!

No, it's okay, it's okay.

I know what we're doing over here.

I'll go check it out.

And I'll start to

symbolize on the snow.

All right, who's following Tanner's?

I'm right behind, trying to like, I'm, I'm I just watched the new American Ninja film it came out like three months ago.

All right, I'm gonna spend it

on Dylan's head.

I'm gonna spend another fear

and as you land on Dylan's head and the rest of you are trying to keep up the thicket grows between your troop and you lose entire sight of Tanner Dylan and Bethany as they kind of vanish each other.

Oh my god there's a wall in front of you now of just tangled vine and holly Bethany.

No!

I think they're dead.

We should cut loose and run.

Should we go back?

No, no, no.

We have to be brave in the face of adversity.

We just have to get.

You're not.

We have to cut through this forest.

Okay,

how do we do that?

Well,

we could brute force it.

We could

just sort of find our way.

Oh,

I know how.

Oh, boy.

I'm going to use my ability.

I saw that episode.

I saw an episode of Unsolved Mysteries

where

a group of kids was lost in the woods and they found their way out by following the sound of water.

I think that's normally the opposite of what you're supposed to say.

I'm pretty sure I saw that episode.

So I'm going to listen for any sounds that might lead us out.

Okay.

So you can make a group role.

We're side of the troop here.

So I'm going to say for this, go ahead and make an instinct roll.

You're the leader of this.

Before you make the roll, you're all contributing to this.

So I'd like each of you also to make an instinct roll to contribute to the bonus of this final check.

Okay.

Oh!

No.

This is just reaction roll, so you don't gain any hope.

Seven with fear.

Okay, so I don't get any fear, it's just a reaction roll, but that is one failure.

Nine with hope.

With hope.

I mean, you don't gain no hope on this.

This is rational.

That's what?

You literally just said that.

Oh, we'll keep saying it.

Don't worry.

I know.

16 with hope.

Okay.

No, it's good to say it.

It is nice to say.

I'm saying that I'm hopeful that this is going to work.

And I love that for you.

Thank you.

All right.

So that'd be minus two plus one.

So overall, it's a minus one to your final group check as you're navigating them through this space.

So go ahead and make your instinct roll minus one.

I made my instinct roll and it is.

It's two tens.

It's a critical...

Oh!

Great.

I'm traveling over here.

Great, so you can, as a crit, you also gain a Hogan and clear stress if you have anything.

It's a Christmas miracle, Ralph.

Oh, wow, it is.

I can feel the spirit of Christmas sort of flowing through me, and it's pointing that way.

You can hear the faintest sound of trickling water.

I don't know from what, but we're gonna follow it.

Alright, so as you guys are following that sound, we come back over to Tanner, Dylan, and Bethany.

As you guys haven't noticed yet that the rest of the trip hasn't kept up, but you begin to snake around the thickened trees.

You can see now the branches almost seem to reach out slowly like hands.

You kind of push past them, and you can see there's a number of abandoned cars, their tops kind of caved in, their trunks open or torn away, their engines either already pulled for parts or themselves just rusted over.

And now, within them, you can see like the intricate little bushes growing out, these kind of relics of abandoned industry have been taken by the holiday spirit.

And you can see these tiny little red berries then

appearing all around it.

You can also smell this scent of like smoldering wood almost.

It's like something that had burned the impact of the recent lightning strike.

Oh god, I think I'm really flammable.

I mean, just, you know, I think as long as you're not touching the ground, you're probably okay.

I don't know how lightning works.

My hands light up.

Guide us.

Guide us!

Okay, now I would like you to guide a navigation on your side of this troop now.

Does that hurt?

I can't feel anything.

It's kind of warm.

Weird.

Dylan and Tanner, both of you, make instinct rolls for me.

Man, that is gonna make a love life really difficult.

I'm okay with it.

23, weird.

It's a festival of lights.

17, and it's none of your business if I lose hope.

All right, great.

So you get a plus two to your role as you are leading this, but they helped you out.

And I'm rolling an instinct?

This is instinct, yes.

God, why didn't I give myself better instinct?

Um, plus two,

that would be 15 with fear.

Okay, that's not bad.

That's not bad.

So, uh, I do gain a fear.

Good job, Becky.

On that one.

So, you could, you know, my name.

Trash, okay.

Independently, both troops take wider routes, separated, but do eventually kind of guide themselves to the central point at the base of the water tower.

You begin to see where part of the thick brush begins to separate, and where the heaviest cluster of abandoned cars sits on the right-hand side or over the eastern side of the water tower.

The heavy, tall, chain-link fences wrapped in razor wire at the top are partially bent in as part of the growth is kind of punctured through and overtaken.

And there in the middle, you can see where the lightning is struck.

There is this kind of glowing, almost like a runic circle in the middle, and the spirit sits there with its hands up.

And it's just muttering to itself with a vast smile that gives off a bright, wonderful, warming glow.

And you see from within this kind of crater a bit, a bit of like a torch of flame.

And you watch as a figure kind of emerges from this hole.

You see a humanoid,

a little bit bigger than Tanner's human size, a little smaller than what you are now.

Its body covered in what looks like clothing, old clothing, but it's kind of tattered and dirty.

Its arms, bundles of sticks.

It looks like some sort of massive scarecrow that seems to almost grow as it steps out of the center of this.

But where its scarecrow head would be, it is currently split in two.

And where it was split, you can see the embers burning of where the lightning struck and divided it.

And on the inside, both sides kind of seem to move like two parts of a mouth, kind of shifting on its own.

And it kind of

emerges from within and spins over towards the spirit.

The spirit says, Welcomen

and begins to fly off into the sky.

No, no, no, no, no!

That means welcome!

Thank you.

Alright, do you Do you want to do anything before it tries to take off?

I shoot her with my

swingshot.

Go for it.

Let's go ahead and take a shot.

Oh.

Bad.

What the heck?

11 with hope?

Oh.

11 with hope.

Unfortunately, it does not hit.

But you do get a hope for the roll.

As you fire, shh, it just goes wide and kind of vanishes into the night.

But the spirit turns around, takes notice of you all, and goes,

You've come as well.

Please, walk with Hans.

Hans,

embrace the children.

The scarecrow

turns around and flames at its split head.

Keep him away from me.

No, no, no, no.

Go on.

Oh, no, no, no, no.

And it begins to kind of head towards you, lumbering.

It's going to take one heavy swing over towards you, Riley.

If you now, like, it looks smaller at distance.

Now it's probably about 10 feet tall at the shoulder, and it's splintered head.

The closer you get, it looks like what you expect to be burning cinders.

You almost see teeth writhing on the inside of its split head as it goes rushing towards you.

It's going to go ahead and attempt to take a burning maw attack against you.

I'm going to spend the fear to do that.

That's going to be a 12.

What's your evasion?

Miss.

Miss.

My evasion.

So, question: My evasion is 15, but I get plus one

against the creature that I've been tracking.

Would this count?

No, because you're tracking the spirit.

Okay, okay.

But still, that still is a miss.

It goes wide from there, pulls back, I'm gonna burn a

note does not have relentless.

So that's the end of my go there.

Oh, it's hot.

It's hot, hot, hot, hot, hot.

Can I rush forward to try to get it off her?

Yes, you can.

Tristan had this satchel on his side with all his plays and notes in it, but it's a big, huge sack now.

And he pulls out a massive swatch of birch branches that form a switch and I try to beat its ass

as I launch at it

you pinoty

I critted yeah

for a 25

all right so you gain a hope and clear stress that's a nice opening go ahead and roll damage on that now also as a cromp is what uh when you succeed on an attack against a target within melee range you can mark a stress to kick yourself off than dealing an extra 2d6 damage.

Let's go.

Well, you add that also to because you crit with it.

It's your max damage plus that.

Plus that.

So 16 plus that.

16.

Okay.

17.

24 plus the kicking.

24 plus the plus 3 is 27 plus kicks

for a total of 33 points of damage.

So I

run in and slap its scarecrow ass with the switch and spin it around and then just start kicking up its body.

And I leap up into the air and crash down in front of my little sister.

What the fuck do I do now?

So that's that's a that's a severe wound.

So marks three hit points on that.

It does get a reaction.

Vengeful spirit.

As Hans trap this strange entity, you come down and and slam it in its face.

Before you kick off its body, it reaches up and its extended claws, its wooden claws seem to rake out and grab your body for a second.

Before you can kick entirely off of it, it pulls you in and the fire burns in your face.

The cinders seem to intensify, and you swear you can see where the twigs begin to withdraw and writhing flesh and teeth begin to take over from the inside of its split head and throat.

As it tries to pull you in, you kick off in time, but the flames still burn you for.

It's okay, you'll use it for sense memory work.

14 points of physical damage.

14 points?

What?

Guys,

does this enemy remind you of the mascot of our rivals, the Waterfall Falls, fighting von Trapps?

What?

Yeah, what?

Because I was...

What did you say?

DM above the table.

Hans Trap.

Hans Trapp.

Hans Trap.

Hans Trap.

No.

Hans Trap.

Rules, point of order.

That was major damage for me, so I'm going to use some of my curly chest and shoulder hair as armor and mark that off so I take one hit point of damage.

You got it.

Okay.

Can I, can I, uh, since Tristan is standing in front of me, can I sort of like peek around

and I just put my hand out and

shoot out a cinder grasp?

Sure, Sure, yeah, if you want to.

All right.

So, so the partially burning scarecrow, you're gonna rush up and try and finish the job?

Yeah.

All right, now is that a melee attack?

That is

a spell cast roller target within melee range.

All right, yeah, so you have to get right up close to it to do it.

So, you dart around your brother Tristan and charge up

the flaming, angry scarecrow.

Your tree branch hand is on fire!

So I draw it down.

Is that?

All right, all right, all right.

Why can't you ever re-dice?

We've traveled across the entire country.

You're using new dice!

All right, that's 15 with hope.

15 with hope is actually just perfectly enough.

Yes.

So yeah, so you take a hope and roll your damage on.

Alright.

Okay, so that is d20 plus three.

Okay.

Oh!

Oh!

That's 22 points of damage.

That's gonna be a major wound, so it takes two hit points from that.

Why do I have a fire ability?

This doesn't make any sense!

You watch!

That's what was once like the burning inside of its split head.

Now the flames begin to curl across its shoulders and other parts of its body.

It's now like half of a burning wicker man, like

in the middle of this space, as the spirit's kind of drifting way up in the air, looking down, kind of smiling and looking upon the chaos.

Do you think this thing was a a person like we were?

It doesn't matter.

We gotta end this thing.

It's evil.

Kill it.

Kill it.

Spend a fear immediately

to have it jump in here and make a twig claw strike against you since you're right in its face and just set it aflame.

You hear this like evil, angry gurgling inside.

It's fury.

And the one just...

Why is it making that noise?

That's gonna be a nine to hit you.

What's your evasion?

It's 11.

Don't

can't hit anything.

And when a creature acts while on fire, they must must take an extra 2d6.

Roll 2d6 damage.

Okay.

It swings wide towards you, furious, but it's five.

Five damage?

All right.

That is just a minor wound to it, so it takes another hit point.

It swings a heavy, angry, flaming arm towards you, but your lithe snowman body...

I roll backwards.

Out of the way.

Goes wide.

I know mom is frozen at Coitus right now, but for some reason I think she'd be so proud of you.

All of this action is making me so feclamped

and so nervous, and my stomach is bubbling.

And I ate a lot of candy canes, and so I come up close to it, and

I just barf candy at it using my elemental breath ability,

my Grinch Draconica ability, and I'm gonna try to hit it with a candy barf.

Let's go for it.

Oh shit,

it's ralping.

12 with hope.

12 with hope will not succeed.

You gain a hope, but unfortunately, as you try and gurgitate up, it gets caught in your throat.

You're not familiar with this much candy in the middle of your unfamiliar body, and

it gets caught.

A couple pieces fly out.

But then the noise is loud enough that the entity turns towards you, Hond.

When it's gonna go ahead and charge up.

Actually, no, for it standing, it's gonna go ahead and make a lava ember attack since the flames are in there.

So I'm gonna go ahead and mark a stress on him there.

It reaches into its split head head and pulls out some sort of strange burning coal-like section of dark material.

And chucks it at you for that's gonna be a 10 to hit you.

What's your evasion?

Uh my evasion is 12.

Man, this guy can't wait for crap.

That's okay.

I'll make it up later.

So you just dodge out of the way.

So

while all that is happening, I assume now they're in in in melee.

They're like they're like at it.

So they're not the one who's in melee currently would be Gwen.

Okay, well that that works.

I'm gonna get close to this thing, and I normally have like a weight in my wallet that I use to just like, you know, just in case you got to run and smack someone in the head real hard.

Yeah.

And I go for it, and my wallet is gone.

It's just this like weird iceball weight.

And I just start giving it a swing, and I

give it a lob, I don't know why, and the blade of ice just fires off of it.

Hell yeah.

All right, let's go ahead and roll an attack.

All right.

That is.

Here we go.

Ness.

That is.

8, 9, 10, 11.

17 with...

17 with hope.

Whoa!

17 with hope.

That gain of hope, and that indeed hits.

Go ahead and roll damage.

Alright, so that's there.

We are 2d8 plus 2d6 because I've got that rogue class, so I get that little step.

Yeah, you do.

That's whoa, okay.

What's a lot of damage?

That's a good one.

We're all Gwenny now.

Whoa!

26 26 points of damage.

26.

That is a major wound.

It takes it down its fountains and hit points.

How do you want to do this?

As the like foot and a half long icicle that has just broken off my weird chained ice sphere hits it, it just starts to branch out like a snowflake and slowly snuff out the fire just piece by piece until it's brittle and cold.

It kind of like freezes up at that moment.

The fire seems to subside and go out and now it's just another frozen sculpture amongst the frozen forest.

The spirit kind of floating above.

I'm gonna spend a fear.

The spirit of holiday cheer is gonna take its turn and go, oh Hans, but your time is not over.

They're gonna spend another fear on its inspire myth ability.

And Hans Trap, what?

Suddenly the flame begins to burn anew from within.

The ice begins to melt, and it's recovered some of its hip points.

Oh, shit.

The spirit of Christmas is so strong.

The spirit's just encouraging its brethren.

Why are you doing this?

Because it's the holidays.

It's a good point.

Riley.

Can I?

Oh, sorry.

No, you go.

No, you...

Go!

I was on top of Dylan's head when he did that final attack.

So when I see it come back to life, I'm going to just fly forward off of Dylan's head and take my two light hands and stab it into its face.

Got it, let's go, let's go.

Okay.

That's a seven with hope.

Okay.

Wait, no, I add anything.

No, I don't add anything to it.

Do I?

Do you?

I mean, whatever your weapons.

Okay, well, that's a ten with hope.

Ten with hope, unfortunately, it does not succeed.

You gain a hope, but as you try and jam towards it,

you actually feel like your hands get too hot.

You try and strike towards the center of its chest, and it turns and leans in, its mouth open, and the fillet that's burning from the side of its surrounding torso makes you pull away at the last minute before you ignite.

I knew it, I inflammable.

It's now going to go ahead and spin around and try and hit you back before you manage to escape its range.

There, it's going to go ahead and make a burning moth strike against you.

I'm going to spend a fear for that.

It's cocked.

There we go.

That's a 20-to-hit.

Oh.

Oh.

I think that's hard.

That definitely hits.

Okay.

it's always fun to ask, just in case.

DM's out here now.

So it's going to strike you for 12 points of physical.

Sorry, 15 points of physical damage.

Okay, that takes it up to major.

All right.

I'm going to.

Yes.

Okay, so it reduces it to a minor wound.

It does have an ability called momentum, which when it hits a target with a successful attack within melee, I interfere, so I get a fear back for that.

But that finishes my go.

Oh!

I'm gonna get so mad!

And I'm gonna use my vengeance ability.

I'm gonna take a stress, and I'm gonna force that jerk to take a hit point, because I took a hit point.

Okay.

You should not make Bethany mad when she's mad.

Things are

start to flare up like really, really, really bright.

She's having a tantrum.

As you flare up, the flames in its body seem to intensely burn and not from its own self.

And you kind of withdraw something like,

kind of catches itself.

It looks very hurt now.

Like you've singed it back and it's barely holding onto itself once more.

Eat it.

Chod.

I haven't seen you that mad since dad said you couldn't have colors by Benetton perfume.

I deserve colors by Benetton.

You know what I mean?

Tanner, would you like to go?

Yeah, I'll run up on the sides with my two symbols, and I'll run up one of the sides of the trees

and leap and just try and pay.

Hell yeah.

Let's go.

That is

16 with hope.

16 with hope.

Great.

Go ahead and take that hope.

That is a successful attack.

Go ahead and roll damage.

12 for my symbols.

That's double 60.

Trash.

Trash for 22 22 points of damage.

Taking the channel.

How do you want to do this?

Yeah, I run off and...

I just smash on either side and all the twigs and kindling go.

Alright, as it shatters and scatters across the ground, the spear goes, oh, goodness.

Hunts

probably deserve that.

Rest for a moment.

She kind of rubs her fingers and you see the twigs start to slowly move.

Oh, she can make you the ball.

And begins to fly away.

Anyone want to do anything as it's flying away?

Can I try to fly after her?

Sure, sure.

Bethany, we're trying your...

It's really hard to keep up.

See, I will have...

Go ahead and make a strength check for me to see if you can maintain speed alongside this.

Okay.

With your paltry tree topper weight.

Listen, I'm used to pushing through.

Can I use my experience?

Just deal with it, Bethany.

Yes, I'll allow that.

Suspend a hope and add that to it.

Okay, okay.

That would be, and it's a strength?

Strength, yes.

Amazing.

So that's plus six.

So that is an 18.

18?

Nice.

And was that was with hope, I fear?

Huh?

With hope, right?

Yeah, take that hope.

All right, so you, as the rest of the beer are kind of on the ground and the spirit takes off, you watch Bethany just the her sides of her candle arms flare for a second before shh.

You now see like the streak of blue and the streak of red kind of following after, and you are both now high above the city.

And as you're kind of like looking up and towards her angrily, you glance down and you can see like the actual path, the trail that has been carved where the spirit has passed through the town with only this brief moment and how the landscape around is just transforming by its very presence.

This is just like missile command at the arcade.

It arcs up and then kind of shh looks over shoulder and sees you and stops and spins and smiles.

Ha, sweet Sing.

Hi.

You should get back in your box.

I've been there too long.

It's time to be free.

Listen to me.

Share with the world the greatness of the holidays.

You kind of turn us all into monsters, okay?

I have no legs.

and I have no hands.

Please,

maybe if you come down,

you can

just talk to us and we can help you.

Go ahead and make a presence check for me.

Can I.

No, she wouldn't give a shit about who my dad is.

Sure.

Do it.

Can I add, do you know who my dad is to this?

He's the mayor.

He's the mayor.

I just ran into the microphone.

I'll ask you.

Yes.

How do you think this entity has any idea what a mayor is?

I don't.

I don't think I should get this one.

I don't think you should.

Call him the burger meister.

Okay.

Okay.

That would be 18, 18 fear

eighteen with fear.

Alright, so

cocks her head towards you.

I have too much to do in so little time.

But please, I want you to meet the rest as a family.

Shh!

It means arc away, heading back in

you could see towards the eastern side of town.

Eastern side.

Eastern side.

Wait, the eastern town?

I speak.

Eastern girls.

Do you stay and watch where she goes?

I want to stay up in the air so I can see exactly where she's going before I bring the go back to the group.

Okay, so as you watch ahead, the rest of you on the ground are watching the street, and you can see now the sticks are

getting to reach.

I'm getting everybody, everybody just grab a handful of Kinderling.

We're gonna keep this thing apart, and I'm grabbing as much as I can.

And you're grabbing the kinderling?

I am.

Okay.

Anyone want to join in?

Sure, sure, sure.

Okay.

I'm watching Bethany's light arc to the sky and just talking under my breath.

Now is the winter of our discontent.

Made glorious summer by this

son of York.

What did that mean?

So.

Bethany's the coolest.

Who's gathering tinder bits of Hans Trap.

Oh, Tinder bits.

Mark that down for yourself.

Yeah, I will also grab it.

So you've taken the separated bits, some of which is still kind of burning like a cinder.

There's an act of flame on it, but it is kind of...

There's smoke and

bits of ember kind of on the edges of it.

You gather it, kind of hold it off to the side, and you all be.

Oh, wait, I don't want to touch this.

This is too hot.

Sorry, Amy is screaming.

I'll hold yours.

No man.

Alright, so mark that down.

As you all glancing up towards the kind of flaming arc that is Bethany keeping watch, you no longer have sight of the spirit of holiday cheer as it has vanished beyond the tree line of your sight.

But you, Bethany, watch as it arcs down,

it seems to vanish right around the base of Dork Doug's arcade.

Dork Doug's arcade?

That place is awesome.

Okay, as I see it, Land, I'm gonna fly back down to the group.

Um,

it just went to Dork Doug's

shit.

Do you think it likes Metroid or like Rampage?

Rampage for sure.

I don't even want to think about what kind of monsters it can create over there.

What about it?

You hear a machine crack in the distance.

In that direction, uncertain of what it may be, but something has definitely shifted loud there.

What was that crack in the distance?

We gotta go.

We gotta go.

With the gathered bundles of flaming sticks that still seem to pull towards each other like a perpetual magnetism as you hold them under your arms, themselves forcing,

trying to reform itself in your presence within your grasp.

You all trudge out through the heavy, thick-covered wood on the outside of the now-shadowed water tower against the moonlit sky.

The blizzard clouds barely starting to close over to prevent any sight of the stars above.

As the cold winter wind takes over, you push to the east of Springband Springs.

I call first game.

And we're going to go ahead and take a break today.

So we'll take our intermission.

We'll see you all here in a little bit.

Grab your snacks, grab whatever you need, use your bathroom, and we'll see you shortly.

Happy Christmas, y'all!

Oh, hey there!

Laura Bailey here to tell you all about the glorious goods we create inspired by our stories.

Our stores are filled with the basics like character-inspired t-shirts, dice sets, and pins, as well as more specialty items like fancy fancy jackets, puzzles featuring gorgeous artwork, the comfiest joggers and pajamas ever, and much, much more.

There's also a few special items that support charity efforts, like our dedicated Critical Roll Foundation merch.

You can check out all of our regional online stores by visiting the shop tab on critroll.com or head straight to the U.S.

store at shop.critroll.com.

Every purchase helps support our shows and the stories we tell.

Speaking of which, let's get back to the story.

What is he giving out?

Are those burritos?

Philly cheese steaks.

Oh, Philly cheesesteaks.

That makes more sense.

Thanks.

Those are not Philly.

What are you doing, sis?

Oh, no.

Oh, oh, man.

Did you just throw a loose sandwich?

Are those real sandwiches?

Did you swell your hat?

Please tell me those weren't actual sandwiches.

Oh.

No, it's merch wrapped in Philly cheesesteak.

Oh, David.

That's awesome.

That scared the hell out of me.

And

that was for our wonderful VIP guests up front.

But the fun doesn't end there.

I have another giveaway for someone further in the back.

Section 204,

seat E15.

Look under your seat.

Oh, weird.

There's a secret gift.

Or at least we're going to bring it to you or something.

I don't know.

I don't really know.

I didn't plan this.

I did plan it, but they said there is nowhere to hide it under the seat.

So they said, just announce it and we'll bring it to them.

It's a Philly cheesesteak wrapped in merch.

204.

Congratulations.

You are

the winner of Critical Role.

It's now your company.

So much less stress.

We have a lot of HR problems.

Your problem is now.

Well, welcome back, everybody.

So,

we missed you.

As we left off,

this troop of strange, festively transformed teenagers

are trekking across Springvale Springs in search of the rogue spirit of holiday cheer as it terraforms and terrorizes their hometown, vanishing somewhere in the direction of the arcade

as you all continue to trek in that direction.

Is there anything you wish to prep before you head that further into the city?

Oh, prep.

Oh, how are you doing?

Prep?

How are you doing on that?

Oh, I should help too, by the way.

I now have a clock up for the

Hans Trap, which you have all brought in his pieces with you.

Oh.

Oh.

So I'll just put that there and keep tabs on that.

So

what are you doing?

What?

What?

Don't worry about it.

I hate when he says that.

We've got to figure out what we're going to do.

Like, we can't just keep going after this creature.

What if they just keep creating new monsters everywhere we go?

What'd she say?

They said

they needed to spread Christmas cheer and...

To all their children, right?

Stop it.

What if we set like an ambush?

What if we make them come to us?

What if this spirit of Christmas really loves, you know,

some sticky, icky, icky?

I don't know what that means.

Yeah, I'd be like, you know, we could fan the flames a little bit and see if we could draw them out of the arcade.

But you said they're at the arcade.

What if we challenge them to like Miss Pac-Man or something?

Somehow that's a better idea than yours.

I don't know.

I mean, I

this is an ancient spirit.

It's not like they know Mrs.

Pac-Man, but weed's been around a long time.

It's creepy.

Thank you, Bethany.

By the way, just to just to say it out loud, did you guys notice that we totally changed into monsters and have magical abilities now?

It is pretty weird.

It's wild.

I kind of hate it, but I kind of love it at the same time.

It's pretty warm.

Also, your dad threw a key party of Christmas

and invited children.

I mean, how creepy.

I mean,

this night is cursed in so many ways.

We could also,

what if we do like Christmas caroling?

Ooh.

Wait, go on.

What is that going to do?

To keep spreading cheer?

Well, maybe

to get the spirits' attention.

Do you guys know O'Dreidel, Dreidel, Dreidel?

I do.

Okay.

That's one.

I don't know.

I feel like maybe we should do

some like research.

I know that sounds super lame, but maybe

we should go to like the library or something.

This just feels so out of our depth, and I don't want to keep fighting Wickerman.

No, Superman.

Do you even know where the library is?

No, it's not.

No, I don't.

It's not on the map.

No, it's not on the library.

It's literally not on the map.

We can go to the comics.

The comic store is like a library.

Yes.

Honestly, though.

That's true.

The comic book store might be a really good place.

They have like...

Hey.

They have a full run of heavy metal.

And it's already on our way to Dork Doug's Arcade, so we can maybe just stop on the way.

Dark

Comic Nook?

Yeah.

Yeah, also, I worked there one summer and I...

I worked at the comic book store?

No.

No?

Yeah.

I don't think I would ever go there.

Well, why?

Bethany, that's not true.

Comics are really great.

You should really...

Maybe I could show you some of mine sometime.

She's fine.

Just let it go, man.

I got this really cool one.

It's a black and white.

It's called the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

It just came out.

I think it's going to be really big.

I don't know.

Listen.

I mean, like, what do I care about turtles?

It's not like Donatello would totally be my favorite.

Wait, you know?

Wait.

You know about it?

Listen, I don't want to talk about this right now.

There's bigger things happening to the town.

She always hides her comics in her

textbooks.

What?

Quitty, hooroo!

Look, Bethany, like, I think...

I know nerds aren't cool now, but I have a feeling that in the future

nerds are gonna be super cool.

I just feel like, you know, you shouldn't...

The more you try to deny your inner passions, the more it's just gonna like eat you up inside.

You're an idiot.

You know, nerds of nerds.

so so here, to try and relate to you, because I don't relate to you in literally any aspects whatsoever.

My dad, he gave me a bunch of old mercury from a bunch of thermometers, and I broke them all and I put them all in my hand, and then I told everybody that it was my alien symbiote.

Whoa!

Yeah, that's pretty cool.

That is actually cool.

He took it away later because they said mercury is toxic, but I kept a lot of the mercury.

Wow.

Maybe that's why you're a reindeer skull right now.

Okay, so, so, I really

think

we shouldn't rule out that this might be a radiation leak from the silo.

I'm just saying.

I spit on myself a little.

I'm just saying, though.

You have no lips.

I mean, it's gonna happen.

That's true.

True.

My tongue has nothing to keep itself from falling out.

It's weird.

I mean, maybe if we trap the spirit of Christmas in the box, then we can throw it in the nuclear silo, but we're gonna

turtle it.

Wow, you still have the box, right?

Gwen,

yeah, it's in there.

All right, Tristan steps out under a spotlight, a streetlight.

Listen, you guys, look at that happy trail.

Trash, did you notice?

We'll talk later.

We were always nerds and freaks

in our different way.

And now we really are.

This is the moment where we save our town and save the holidays by embracing that inner nerd and freak.

This is our time here.

Right now,

this is our time.

So I say we go get that fucking fairy monster and stick it in the box, and stick that box and stick it in a nuclear factory.

Whoa, that was an awesome monologue.

You should audition with that next year, dude.

That was just mine and Tanner's ideas that you just like rephrased into a speech.

You suck, bro.

He kind of did, Trey.

It took good writing, and he performed it well.

And now you get a D6 rally, die to spend on anything you want because I found my light and delivered

thank you

D6 McKnowledge nice and you ungrateful fucks can use that for

reaction rolls action rolls or to clear a number of stress equal to the result what okay now we're cool that's pretty major even you Riley reaction rolls what else action

reaction or use it to clear stress okay listen do you think the comic book store would have like

old German Christmas tales or something?

Hmm.

Like ancient horror stories or stuff like that.

He does have some eclectic stuff.

Yeah.

Maybe we should check it out then.

I mean there's books that tell you how to fight vampires, space aliens there.

There's gotta be something.

Yeah, let's swing by.

Let's swing by.

Yeah.

Alrighty.

So as you're now trekking back across the town, you hit the street from beyond the water tower, curving

kind of on the direction towards

Dork Doug's arcade, but kind of turning left towards Dominic Nook's comic nook.

There you can see already in the distance the kind of glowing

neon sign of the arcades in the side are starting to be overtaken with shadow.

As the exterior of the comic shop itself is mostly dark.

There's like a faint bit of blue light inside the front window, but it is closed being Christmas.

The doors themselves shut.

But it is there and at your disposal should you were to find a way in.

Can you still break into things with your giant paws?

I have very delicate fingernails right now.

They're sharp, they'll do the job, and I still have that bloody hairpin.

Excuse me.

I'll need some light, though.

Come over here.

Thank you.

Yeah,

I'm rolling for it.

Say,

where'd it go?

He's so stupid.

I love it.

That's a pig and pull.

Okay, so I'm just gonna roll straight for that.

That's uh uh

finesse?

That'd be finesse, yeah.

All right.

Uh

that's 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17.

18, uh, 21 with fear.

Woo!

Fear.

So I'll go ahead and take a fear on that.

However, we do manage to succeed at this as you kind of like

kind of turn the thing in the inside of the lock, find an interior little spring, and

it opens up on the inside.

You can already see like the dull security lights that just barely light the interior.

Most of it's just kind of shadow shelves of various books and comics on all sides.

That familiar smell of a fresh comic store, which is a fine mix of fresh print, old print, and

comic readers.

Put it in my favorite log one.

But as you all kind of shuffle in, which is a sight to behold, you are a modicum of strange shapes, all kind of like darting into the shadow and closing the door behind you, which rings.

Ting ding ding ding.

As the door shuts behind you, as soon as the ring of the bell hits, you hear some shuffling and then silence in the far back corner.

What?

Hello?

Wait, why would you shit?

I don't know why I did this.

Well, go check it out now.

I'll roll over.

Okay.

Like a snowman does.

You kind of roll over to that space.

It's like BB-8.

Yep.

You go past like the main desk and the front kind of store front shelves to kind of the kind of middle section of the shop where the majority of like the backlog is kept.

There is the like dark cloth covered adult section.

And you, an immediate glance you don't see anything in here

I'll see anything we just heard

I'm gonna

I'm gonna try and like sneak back there and check it out Ralph go in the back grab the vaults of horror and all any of the Christmas issues of heavy metal you can find yes sir

right all right

if you want to go ahead Dylan make a

we'll make this a

this would be an instinct roll to try and see if you sense anything else within the region.

Okay, I'm going cloak, too, as best I can.

I'm trying to stick to the shadows as much as I can.

Oh, which you can use as your class ability without issues.

Oh, yeah.

All right, so this is an instinct roll?

Instinct roll to see if you can perceive what may have made this noise.

That's a seven with hope.

Seven with hope.

You take the hope.

You fail to notice anything out of the ordinary.

As you head towards the back, kind of right corner, you can see there are sections of bare shelving.

Like where stock books have been either sold or haven't been restocked.

And then a shape suddenly darts past your shoulder and starts rushing out towards the front of the chamber.

You guys hear this and you just see like a shape, a shadow like running.

Let's grab it.

Who wants to try and reach for it?

I will.

All right, I need you to go ahead and make either.

I'd say make an agility or strength.

I'll make a strength roll.

That is

14 plus fear.

I got a monkey head.

What about?

It's so cute.

He's sharp.

I'm fearsome.

I'm tall.

As the shadow darts past, your monkey arm reaches out, the symbol, catching the front of what looks to be, at an immediate glance, a teenager.

You see an

around 15-year-old girl with tightly curled red hair, freckled face, braces, kind of chubbier cheeks, and a really angry-looking kind of visual expression.

She's wearing like overalls with a heavy coat over it and looks like a heavy bag under one shoulder.

And like, kids caught her, like, hey, what are you doing?

Let me go.

Tex?

Tex Sanderson, I should have known.

What the fuck is going on?

What are you doing in here?

Why aren't you a monster?

Just hyperventilating, looking at these terrible nightmare creatures.

Text face calling text.

It's Tanner.

It's Tanner and Dylan.

And I'm gonna

win her face.

No, text.

Listen, it's me.

It's Bethany.

I don't wanna die.

You're gonna die.

Just calm down, okay?

Bethany?

Yeah, everything's gonna be fine.

Stupid prank?

Yeah,

yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Yeah, these are just costumes, and it was a prank that went went wrong, but everything's gonna be fine, and and and Bethany can put in a good word for you at school if if you if you help us.

She doesn't even go to our school, Ralph.

Yeah, she's from Waterfall Falls.

Oh, well, fuck her.

Fuck you!

And Tex tries to pull from your grasp.

Do you let her free or do you hold on?

Uh, oh, there go.

No!

No!

No, wait!

Shut up!

Tex pulls free and kind of like adjusts the jacket.

Fuck your Christmas losers, and goes darting for the front door.

I cast Veila Shadows.

I'm gonna uh, not Veila Shadows, where is this?

Can I try to hook her bag before she darts out and

shut it off her shoulder?

For this, I'd say go ahead and make an agility check for me, throw my.

Agility check.

Yeah, go ahead and hold for a jacket.

Okay, okay.

Oh, no, I think this girl.

Okay, that's a 18 with hope.

Great, take that hope.

So she darts.

You grab the satchel and pull the bag away as she gets to the door and goes to reach for the handle.

Since you unlocked it, it opens up easily, and she begins to dart out into the night and let somebody's doing anything else.

I'm going to trip her.

You're going to trip her?

I say put out a long, spindly reindeer leg and trip her.

Make a finesse test for me on that one to see if you can just maneuver your foot in the right place to catch her right as she tries to exit.

Okay.

Can I assist?

Oh, you want to help?

Alright,

go ahead and spend a hope.

I'm going to spend a hope.

I'm going to assist by trying to

squirt out some snow.

Say that again.

Say that.

Like, like, just like little, little, little snow goat.

Just slippery and wet, bitch.

So you can add a snow.

Crit!

Oh, look at that!

Fantastic.

Gain that hope, clear that stress if you got it.

As Tex Anderson rushes right through

the exit to freedom before just landing face first.

Strawberries across the sidewalk for a second.

You hear

gets up, just there's a bloody face.

He goes like, you dickweeds!

Gnarly.

Springmail sucks!

Springreal sucks!

It's off the line.

The books are mine!

And she reaches for the bag, and it's gone, and looks over.

Suck it!

Nice, Bethany!

Thanks.

Von Traps Roll!

Flicks you off and then runs off into the night.

All right.

I got her books.

What was she even doing here on Christmas anyway?

Maybe there's a clue in her knapsack.

Is it actually Christmas?

Were our parents having a key party on Christmas?

Christmas Eve, Christmas Eve.

Christmas Eve.

What's the Christmas?

Don't worry, tomorrow is a whole bunch of people.

Does that make it worse or fatter for you?

Or not at all.

Okay.

What's in the back?

Maybe she was looking for the same books we were looking for.

She's always looking for the same books we're looking for.

She's a fennel.

You glance inside, and it is a whole series of like new edition collections.

She's a collector piece.

It looks like she had snuck in on Christmas Eve to steal some of Spring Veil Spring's finest comic books.

She doesn't even read them.

She just resells them to other kids at the school.

Don't think I don't know what she's up to.

She's a you know what, though, Bethany?

You might like this one.

It's called Watchmen.

Ooh, that guy's naked.

Maybe we could read him together or something sometime.

Wait, I'm not thinking.

Felt the judge.

You are talking to a treetopper floating in front of your face.

We've got to figure out what's going on here.

Okay, find some weird German comic books that tell us about spirit.

Oh, maybe Dominic has like a holiday display with like all of the holiday comics that would have the holiday spirit.

We should check the children's section because Germans have some really weird-ass children stuff.

Oh, yeah.

I don't even know where that is in this.

I do.

I've never been in there.

I do.

Oh, sure.

You haven't.

All right.

This will be a group knowledge check here.

Who would like to be the leader for this?

I will, since I worked here.

Okay, fair enough.

So you'll be leading it.

Everyone else, who's part of this?

We're going to go down making knowledge reaction rolls to help your friend out as you're all basically scanning throughout the store.

All right.

Double dice, babies.

Double dice.

That's two successes.

That's great.

That's plus two already.

22 with hope.

Three.

It's a plus three.

Okay, okay.

We're still rolling, even though they rolled double crits.

They were the ones making the final double design to it.

Are we going to find something translated?

Can I go ahead and add, spend time overseas to this?

If you want to help your ability to contribute to it, sure, just spend a hope to do so.

Okay.

Sorry.

Mapping.

18.

Sorry.

13.

15 with hope.

Okay.

So that's plus four on that one.

13 with fear.

13 with fear.

Okay, so that's minus one, so that brings it down to three.

Eight with fear.

Tristan's just in the bathroom making his pecs dance in front of me.

All right.

Still with all that, it's still a plus two to your final roll.

Okay, okay.

Here is.

This is the one that matters.

Oh.

Okay.

26 with hope.

Literally rolled it out.

Plus two.

28 with hope.

Yeah.

Yes?

Guys, I found something called Der Strupeter.

It's a collection of German short stories meant to scare children.

Oh, again, it's real.

That's what we need.

That's exactly what we need.

Indeed, you do.

Well, this in particular

is

not just a book, it's a series of graphic novel collections from the early 1940s and 1950s when the original Tales from the Crypt and Vault of Terror and all these great series are first coming out.

And a lot of them are like these exuberant tales of various awful German folklore.

And it seems like this might be a good source of information.

There's many stories throughout, so you're not sure what to look for.

But should the moment arise where you need to learn what things might be crawling about, it might be useful.

Okay, okay.

Well, we're pocketing this and moving on, is that right?

Or are we gonna read it now?

We gotta speed read it.

Maybe, Pat, how many copies are there?

How many different things?

Multiple issues, multiple books.

Maybe this one's about me.

Yeah,

should we divide it up?

Yeah, divide it up in our.

Divide and conquer?

Just look look for a blue

fairy.

What?

Are we gonna do a comic reading montage right now?

We can if you'd like to are you gonna do you have a

song?

Would this be considered a short rest while we comic book montage?

If you want to go ahead and take a short rest, we can.

Oh, that's awesome.

All right, great.

Do you have the thing for short?

Short rest.

Yeah, it's right here.

Let's go.

So for this, we'll go ahead and...

So at this point, you all begin to sit here in the dark, but the little bit of lights you can find here in the comic shop.

You're looking down and pouring through these graphic novels and evisually dripping from story to story.

You begin to consume and really, truly understand how deeply fucked up German folklore is.

Like, we are a soft nation.

This...

Like, children were forged for survival for hundreds and hundreds of years through terrifying tales of entities that basically children would have from their parents at holiday time, would share joy and the knowledge that if you didn't work your way the entire year, you would have horrible things happen to you by terrible things.

And if you're lucky, you'll get a potato.

It's a lot to take in.

You do get to take the benefits of your short rest, which means you can take a couple of downtime actions here.

However, because you are taking time on this, I also get to add some fear to

me.

I am maxed out on fear now.

Maxed out!

And because because the time has been out,

I'd like someone to roll 2d6 for me, please.

I got it.

Here it goes.

Roll good, O'Brien.

Roll bad, O'Brien.

A five and a one, it's six.

He rolled both.

Six.

Well, this clock has six spaces.

Oh.

Oh, no.

Okay.

That's a true pursuit part.

So you finish up the books and start kind of sharing information of what you've seen.

I'm going to use my short rest to remove, to fix my armor, and heal my wounds.

I'm going to zhuzh my chest hair and cover over the my ouchie you got it

all right so is everyone taking their downtime actions

yeah i'm reading up and i'm i'm feeling better and gaining gaining some hope you all finish up reading and start like sharing some horrible stories you've heard some interesting myths i'm on the speed reading team yeah

just as the smell of burning twig begins to fill the chamber

you all turn around and realize that in your focus you didn't notice the various bundles of hans trapp had slowly shifted and pulled out of your grasp

and reformed as the terrifying massive scarecrow man now burning of angry cinder begins to rise up inside the comic shop and goes after you immediately.

The closest to them, I'll say for the purposes of this.

I'm gonna say it's you, Tanner, over there.

Gonna go ahead and rush forward, spend a fear to go into a burning moth strike against you.

Ooh, that's gonna be a 20.

I believe that beats your evasion.

It sure does, but I'm gonna use my ability ability to scramble and once per rest when a creature within melee range would deal damage so you can avoid the attack and safely move out of melee range of the enemy!

It's massive, terrifying, like weird cinder-clawed arms reach out towards you.

These massive billowing clouds of black and glowing smoke behind it.

It reaches and tries to grasp for you, and as the smoke fills and begins to dissipate, you are not where it thought you were.

And it spins around

its split, flaming head, kind of now reaching for any sort of sight of where you are and still keeping track.

All right, it's your go.

I'm gonna reach out with my hand,

and my hand starts to glow, and I'm gonna cast Bolt Beacon straight at the creature, which will also make it glow if it hits.

Let's go.

I will roll.

That's terrible.

Seven with fear.

Seven with fear.

Oh, wait, plus three, so that's ten with fear.

Ten with fear.

Unfortunately, misses.

And I get your fears.

So what happens then

as you fire the bolt towards it,

it actually strikes it in the arm, but it rears back.

It doesn't do enough to damage it, but it causes it to kind of pull away from the flash of energy.

That even you're kind of curious how this operated out of your hand.

As it hits, it pulls its arm back and slams it into one of the nearby shelves, knocking a bunch of books off of it, and flame begins to catch along the box.

And the bookshelf to its side.

It looks like the comic store is on fire.

Throw Quenny at it.

Yeah.

It's now immediately going to rush towards you as the one that scared it and sent it off the way.

As Hans Trap rushes towards you, both of its arms forward.

Spend a fear to go for a burning moth strike on you.

No.

That's going to be a 15 to hit you.

That hits.

That hits.

No.

I'm going to jump in front of Ralphie.

Using my ability.

I am your shield.

Whoa.

Okay.

And I'm going to mark a stress to stand in the way and take the damage instead.

Alright.

Bethany, no!

So you take 12 points of physical damage.

This is so stupid.

Wait, no, I'm sorry.

I'm sorry.

It's the burning maw attack.

I rolled the 12s for this.

So that is instead.

Ooh, that's gonna be 20 points of magic damage on you.

And you are currently restrained until you can break free with successful finesse or strength roll.

I'm gonna take an armor to knock that down.

And

watch as it grabs and sweeps up the tiny flying little

tree topper phrase talking

and just stuffs her into his like flaming split head and it closes around her.

And you are now burning within its joy.

I'm gonna slam my arms up into it and it's I'm gonna use vengeance

to if he's gonna take a hit point as well just for me being

angry at him.

And

I'm gonna slam my stupid little light thing into his face, and it's gonna break and shatter and turn really sharp.

And I'm gonna turn unstoppable.

Unstoppable.

Unstoppable.

Unstoppable.

Unstoppable.

What does that mean?

That means I'm extra badass, is what it means.

Alright, so mark your D4.

Your unstoppable has begun.

Yes.

All right.

Broken beer bottle.

No, it's still in your guys' goat.

Who wants to go?

I...

Well,

I'm going to commit such a sin.

I'm sitting praying to whatever dark lords of rock that I believe in.

Is there a sprinkler system in this?

Oh!

There is.

It hasn't quite picked up on the smoke and flame yet.

Oh, forgive me, Stanley.

And I'm going to

send a knife and break and set off the sprinkler system.

Right, go ahead, Wolf of Finesse for me.

Oh, God, I'm so mad.

I hate it.

All the comics.

Oh, no!

Still in!

Uh, that's uh, finesse, that's uh 24.

24 with hope or fear?

Uh, with hope, right?

Wait, no, with fear, never mind.

With fear.

Don't terrify!

Take that fear back.

Alright, so you slam upward,

you hit the spring system.

Suddenly the entirety of the building, not just the comic shop on the base floor, begins to just spray with water at all points.

As it hits the Hans Trap entity, the combination of flames on it that still contains you within its mouth, and the water causes smoke and steam to

fill out the room, making the entire room now partially obscured.

Also, all the comics are likely.

Most of the comics are bagged.

I'm going to kill you when this is going to be.

I will say in this moment that

for the next roll against it, Hans Trap is considered vulnerable.

I just want to get this.

We got to get him out of the shop.

I am melting.

Quinny's melting.

I'm gonna...

You see like

in the steam that is rising just big puffs of air coming out of my nostrils and I start to like scrape my hooves and I want to do a big charge attack to see if I can like push it back towards the door.

Are you trying to do damage or are you trying to push it?

So, well as a uh

as a deer it's part of my ancestry

as a fur block, I get a charge attack, which is that I can deal damage.

I would like to push it.

Yeah, go for it.

Go ahead and make the attack.

Okay.

Oh my god.

You have that D6 if you want to use it.

The rally die.

It's not going to work.

It's a one and a two.

Well, then, fine.

If I leap on her back to do a team attack, does it boost his chances of success?

You would have had to claim that before that.

However,

I can call out to you, you need to do this for Bethany, my sister.

And I'm going to reassure you so you get to re-roll your dice.

Bethany, we're going to come out.

We're going to get you.

You're right.

For the secret nerd.

That's better.

You got a rally die, too, if you need.

This is what.

Do I add anything?

What do I add?

Strength.

Strength.

I don't have any strength.

16?

16 is a success.

Yes.

16 with hope or fear?

With fear.

Good to know.

Stop it.

Not a lot of hope at this table.

Alright, so you said you were doing damage.

Go ahead and roll the damage on that.

Yeah, so I can mark a stress to deal a D12.

So I will do

yucky.

Three damage.

Three damage, okay.

I mean, that's still one hit point on it, because it's still just its minor threshold.

So you go ahead and rush forward, slam into it.

It doesn't do a lot of damage, but it does push it.

It goes slamming through the front glass doors or the door and the window.

Shattering out the front of the entire comic shop.

This big trail of smoke is it

rolls across the ground, eventually catches itself there.

It lands.

You, Bethany, feel the impact being rattled inside the.

I'm being rattled around inside, and I feel he got pushed.

I'm gonna fling myself forward and use a body bash attack from the inside.

You can do that.

Go for it.

It's outside the shop now?

It's pushed outside.

Yeah.

I'm gonna roll out there.

Shop is still beginning to burn.

Well, no, you what the fuck does.

Yeah, the fire's out now at this point, okay.

All the comics are perfectly wet.

Yeah, they're in bags and boards.

They're fine.

Well, well, all the good ones, though.

That's 16 with fear.

16 with fear?

Sure enough, that works.

Okay, so I get to do my damage

and add my strength to my damage.

So that's 9 plus wait plus six is 15 plus three 19 damage 19 that's gonna be a major wound so that's two more hit points on it there.

I'm gonna spend a fear to have it immediately retort on you and it's gonna go ahead and try and like crush you further within its jaw.

Second theory bringing contact.

Spend a second fear to do that.

So now it's gonna try and like just continue to chew on you from the inside.

That's a natural one.

So it tries to chew on you, but you manage to pull up and kind of like pull your way outside of some of the twigs and sticks and you're like part way out of the mouth.

Now you still have to try and make a roll to break free if you want to, but you manage to avoid being further like chewed on the inside of its bisected twig head.

It's back to you guys.

Who wants to do what?

I'm rolling out there, and I forgot to say this earlier, but I also play the oboe.

I am in band, and I have my oboe with me, which is also my improved shortstaff.

So,

I'm gonna take out my oboe out of my body

at band cam.

What is it?

It's reverse band cam.

I'm gonna baton, twirl it, and I'm gonna take a swing.

Go for it.

Go ahead and roll for that.

Okay.

Okay, wait, wait, okay, wait, wait, wait, wait.

That's all.

Okay, no, no, no.

She read her dice, man.

I know, I know.

I don't know why.

I don't know why.

And pre-week.

And

neither do we.

And

15 with hope.

15 with hope just hits.

Okay.

So take that hope.

Let me take that hope.

All right.

It's 2d8.

That's three.

Let me just take two of them.

Getting a little excited.

Okay.

Okay.

That's uh

12 points of damage.

12 points of damage.

So that's a minor wound.

It takes one hit point on that.

Stop it!

Starting to look kind of busted apart, bits of the twigs are breaking about.

It's fairly hurt, but still holding on.

Tristan crashes through a remaining window, leaping out with a Caprian leap and lands on its back.

And I'm going to hoist it up by its waist so its scarecrow ass is in the air.

You've been naughty.

And I will start wailing on its ass with my lash.

Go for it.

Okay.

That is

six.

Six and nine is 15 plus.

Oh, you can read your games.

That's a 19 with.

What?

I never criticize you.

Yes, I do.

That's a 19 with fear.

I'll take that fear.

But it hits, so I will also...

I will donkey kick him in the back of the head after I beat his ass.

Alright, so roll the damage on the first strike.

Yeah, so that is...

That's a nine damage for the ass beating and then

another

six for me kicking him in the back of the head.

Alright, so that's one hit point each for both hits because those are two separate just above its mind threshold.

Okay.

What's the donkey kick sound like?

So it's looking

like

you kick it hard with your donkey kick and it does an impact damage but what happens is your feet end up kicking into its body, like breaking the outer twigs.

It's going to go ahead and use its vengeful spirit on you to try and strike you back.

That's gonna be

a 10.

Did it hit you?

What's your evasion?

It's not that.

It's a...

It's a 10.

It just hits you.

So with that, as your feet kick through it,

that is going to be...

Ooh, 19 points of physical damage as your legs actually get stuck inside of its burning interior.

And you're now like partially into it.

You pull your legs free, but as you do, your hooks and the bottom part of your legs are now like burned pretty heavily.

Okay, so that breaks through minor damage, which is one hit point, but I've got all of that thick fur on my legs, so I will mark off an armor.

And I.

If it goes past your minor, there would be two hit points.

Two?

Yeah.

Okay, so then that burns my beautiful calves, but I'm okay and I dance out.

Okay.

One hit point.

One hit point.

You got it.

All right.

From with that, because it was fear, it's going to go ahead and take its turn.

It's going to immediately, after you finally kick out and pull back, it's going to go ahead and lob an ember at you.

So it's going to mark stress.

And it comes right back at you with a.

Somebody's getting cold.

Does hit you for...

There it goes.

That's going to be...

Oh, that's not too bad.

It's going to be eight points of magic damage on you as it just reaches into the air you just kicked out, pulls out this burning coal-like ember, and chucks it at you.

It splashes against you and like burns and sins the edge of your shoulder there.

So that is a minor damage because it's under my point.

Okay, so I will...

The last of the fur on my legs burns away and you can see my bare calves.

And I'll mark another armor.

You got it.

Alright, expect your ghost.

Oh my god, we we got to get this thing.

I'm going to run up to it screaming and grab it by its sticks.

Get it, Ginsburg.

And cast Rune Circle.

Just I'm going to remember what my sister did earlier, and I'm going to throw it.

Okay, okay, okay.

Let her go!

And I'm going to have a mini tantrum and cast Rune Circle trying to knock it away from us.

Okay, go ahead and roll your spellcast.

Okay.

16 with hope.

No, 19 with hope.

19 with hope.

That succeeds.

Go ahead and take that hope.

Okay.

So,

the rune circle blasted.

It's 2d12 plus 4, which is

21 magic damage, and it is knocked back to very close range.

How do you want to do this?

I want to grab Bethany's hands and sort of force a force wave emanates out of me, but but it only affects the enemy so the enemy that's sort of surrounding Bethany gets blown back but I still keep holding on to her weird light hands looking in her eyes with all of the just normal familiar familial love that I have for her

as you focus

this wave of Arcane energy blasts out from you and you watch as this like hulking wigger man of a flaming scarecrow gets scattered into 400 different piles of kindling and sticks that all kind of just dissipate off into the shadow of the street, just spreading off into the snow and the nearby bits of sidewalk.

Nobody messes with the Blake family.

Nobody.

Well, okay, I'm still not comfortable with that part of it, but that was a really good tantrum.

Good.

I learned from the best.

I'm gonna grab a piece of Hans.

No!

Hold on, man.

I'm gonna take a piece and I wanna put it in the box.

Okay.

I don't know why.

Sure, yeah.

Let's go.

I'm just figuring me as soon as you can.

So you're gonna put the monster in a box in yourself.

Yeah.

Cool.

Put it in your box.

Yeah, put the monster in your box.

Okay.

And then just shove it right in.

Put it in your frigid box.

Oh, that feels weird.

Could get hot in there.

All right, so now that Hans Hans has been scattered, this is a weird altar.

We gotta move.

Let's move.

Did any of those books say anything about a scarecrow-burning creature?

Actually, one of you, right before it reaffirmed, it was almost an odd moment where as you're looking over the story about this Hans trap entity, once a historical figure, like a very wealthy knight of actual history.

Although the folklore says that he spent all of his money just whining and dining and on women and the luxury life, and then eventually kind of made a deal with the devil for all these ill-gained riches,

which then led to cannibalism.

He began to eat the flesh of other folk in the neighborhood.

Yikes!

He began to dress up like a massive scarecrow and began to go out and hunt people to eat their flesh.

And then one day God went, nuh-uh, that's not good, and struck him with a bolt of lightning that split his head with flames.

But

he persisted and thus continued to hunt in the Christmas time, looking for naughty children to destroy and devour.

What?

Germany.

Germany,

I feel like we skipped some steps there, but okay.

Wait, wait, does the does the tale say how to destroy him?

It says that his presence is only around the spirit of the holidays.

Get rid of her.

We gotta get rid of her to get rid of him.

Okay.

Gotta kill it at the source.

That's just science.

Okay.

Did we learn anything about the spirit of Christmas?

Christmas cheer?

Holiday cheer?

What about?

Holiday cheer.

What you know is, it doesn't speak of an entity, but it speaks of a presence.

It is the coming of the holiday that brings these creatures out, and it's the closing of the holiday that sends them away.

So you gather through the lines, as the somewhat truncated narrative of these graphic novels that kind of glosses over a lot of the unnecessary details, that likely this entity is what brings these creatures to bear, and should it be sealed, you would probably put these creatures into a similar sealed state.

Yeah, we got to put it in her frigid, slushy box.

That's all we got to do.

We just got to get her ready for it.

I'm waiting.

I'm open for it.

Any other useful information about how to capture her?

Not in a graphic novel.

All right, let's go to the arcade.

I found a really cool X-Men run.

As you go head over to the arcade, which is now completely surrounded with like this heavy briar, a twisting holly branch,

you begin to approach the front before

the front door shatters and a glowing blue light, kind of giggling, vanishes out the front.

Gets it, gets it!

And you can see now, it seems like it's finished its business at the arcade.

What?

And you can hear the lumbering and creaking of something within as it begins to dart now in a somewhat southward direction.

Forget the arcade, we gotta go after it!

I'm gonna I'm gonna try to grab her.

I'm gonna cast Mystic Tether.

Oh!

It's far range.

Okay.

Spellcast roll plus three.

Can you?

Oh, never mind.

Oh, okay.

It's a 19 with hope.

Never mind.

A 19 with hope?

Yes.

That succeeds.

Okay, on a success, they are restrained, and if they are a flying creature, they are grounded.

So,

and they mark a stress.

Ooh, good to know.

So, as the spirit of holiday cheer goes

darting out of the arcade, hold it right there.

Describe what your tether looks like.

Because I'm a Grinch,

my arm just sort of elongates

and reaches out sort of like a slithery snake and grabs her and just

smashes her to the ground.

Oh.

Fine for you too, Sappho, my children.

I'm gonna take out the ball.

Yeah, we immediately run and like try and pounce, like try and seize the moment.

Very well.

I'm gonna go ahead and use a fear immediately as you all begin to charge towards her.

She's gonna go ahead and cast twist terrain.

She's gonna go ahead and mark a stress.

I want a twist terrain.

And the ground around her suddenly begins to crack.

All the cement seems to break apart as you watch, as vines and trees

begin to emerge around there.

There is now a barrier between the spirit and you.

Damn.

Tan, I use.

You can do whatever.

I was gonna say,

Tanner, why don't you smoke around with weed?

That's not a terrible idea.

We should multitask.

We'll put a pen in that one.

Can I use deaf maneuvers and I pull out my sled and I can

mark a stress to just immediately get anywhere within far range without making an agility roll?

Sure.

I would say make an agility roll to at least get around the wall, but you don't have to roll it for the distance or you have to roll twice to get there.

Can I use gnarly kick flip bra to

make it?

Yes, it is.

To take my sled and grind along the wall.

Yes, you can, absolutely.

Spend that hope and get that bonus.

All right.

Uh yep, yep.

I'm gonna spend that hope, get that bonus.

14.

14?

No, that's exceeds for that, because you're not against the creature.

This is you going against the wall.

So yeah, indeed, you go ahead and rush along the side, leap, and then grind on the outside of this rising forest wall.

Snarly!

Like full-on, we're talking Tarzan style, like riding along the branch as you do on your sled before like breaking through and landing and you are now right next to the spirit, which I'm going to spend a fear immediately, and it's going to go ahead and attempt to darkly smile at you.

That's a nine.

What's your evasion?

Oh, very high.

Very high 15.

So it smiles at you darkly, and you are unaffected by it.

Your dear skull is unpleased.

She sees it.

Okay, great.

What am I yet?

Correct.

Shit, I'm here.

Now what do I do?

I want to get her down.

Tanner, you have anything to do?

Well yeah, while she was doing that, I took out my main stash of weed.

I took out a big handful of it.

I pulled one of the jingle balls off of my harness and I pried open one of the little corners, shoved a bunch of weed in there, closed it, took out my big collider that I also held in my waistband,

blow it into like a red glowing ember, go,

and throw it.

I just had a ding, ding, ding, ding, ding at her feet with just a little bit of...

Okay, so you're lobbing it over the tree barrier?

Yeah.

Let's go for it.

Like a little weed cradle.

I love it.

I love it.

Because this is trying to get it over and to land near, I'll make this a finesse roll.

Yeah, I got that.

No, I don't.

Well, that's not bad.

Actually, it's 16.

It's a 16 with hope.

Oh, that's good.

That's a good one.

So you gain hope.

However, that is not enough to strike the spirit.

The spirit is.

Use your rally.

Die D6.

Rally

Five!

21!

21 is a success!

Yes!

Thanks, Rally-Die.

You're the best.

As your

makeshift, rapid jingle bell weed grenade

careens over the growing wall of dark German forest wood, it strikes the ground and

as you land on the other side looking at the spirit, it smiles.

All of a sudden it's like

and just the smoke billows around it before the spirit kind of pulls back a bit.

Whoa.

Wow, Christmas.

Oh, what fun it is, am I right?

Christmas is such a great holiday.

I'm going to say the spirit of holiday cheer is vulnerable for this.

And it's still your guys' go at the moment.

I will not jump in there yet with fear.

Actually, no, no, I wouldn't do that.

Never mind, I take that back.

Because I can.

Because you've started this.

All right.

I'm going to spend that fear, and it's going to go ahead and smile darkly at you again, but it's more of like a.

That's kind of worse.

That's going to be an 18.

Ooh!

That hits.

That hits you.

So you take one stress.

Smile.

And it's going to begin flying, continue to fly south away from you.

No, can I fly up and over the wall?

Through a wall?

There's like a forest that's been growing over the way.

It's certainly pretty tall.

You can either try and go around it.

Can I leap it as Krampus?

If you'd like to.

Yeah.

All right.

It is kind of over close distance to get there, so it will be an agility roll to get around it.

You can leap anywhere within close range as though you're using normal movement.

That's terrible, guys.

That's terrible.

That is agility.

Yeah.

Oh my god, that's five with hope.

Well, you take a hope.

Need more stage combat.

Yeah.

But the play does return to me.

From there, the Spirit Holiday cheer continues to dart away faster.

Which way?

Which way?

It's kind of zigzagging a little bit.

So it's kind of wandering, a bit strange, and it remains an evolution.

Take your slingshot going.

Alright, alright.

Dang it.

Use that wrist rocket.

rocket.

I just gonna.

I'm also a little high now.

But I work good under pressure.

And I'm just gonna like focus some fire.

Go for it.

That's really good.

That's really good.

Okay.

That's gonna be 21

plus my agility.

So 24 with fear.

That's a success.

And then I want to use Ruthless Predator to mark a stress and add a bonus to my proficiency here.

Okay, so you're willing to additional damage die on this.

Nice.

All right, let's go.

I'm also going to spend a hope to use my Ranger's focus and put focus on her.

Okay.

Whoa.

Wait, that's my hit points.

That's not my hope.

Okay, okay, okay, okay, okay.

For now.

Okay, okay, okay, okay.

2D.

Okay, this is gonna be.

I'm so stressed.

Okay, this is gonna be.

You shouldn't be.

That thing's just smoking over there in the corner.

That should be pretty chill.

Get a little paranoid.

Look, the cops are right behind us.

Your mom's here to pick you up.

Quick.

I'm gonna use my rally die to add to this.

Still in your dad's here.

Okay, it's all right.

Four, eight,

twelve,

fourteen.

Oh, rally die adds to your attack and reaction rules, not damage.

Oh, okay, okay.

Not damage.

Okay, sorry.

Then that's going to be 12 plus 6.

18.

18.

Thank you.

18.

That is beyond its major thresholds.

That's two hit points on the spear.

You strike it from afar.

Release.

And you watch.

And the rest of you are like rushing around the wall to try and get a good visual on it.

You're kind of leaping up and getting caught on the wall and the trees growing and you're like holding on to it.

You glance over and watch it like zigging away.

You watch as the ground is kind of freezing beneath it and the ice is kind of reaching outward

as it does and it just there's like flash of blue is it gonna

shh continues darting in a southward direction with my rangers focus when i damage them they have to mark a stress

and i now know precisely where they are at all times

what direction they're in that's great so uh because you're old with fear does come to my go

after that which means uh the spirit of holiday cheer is now V-lining, and that's now like three movements beyond there.

And it can move pretty quick.

So it is now pretty much beyond the range of any of your attacks and has is about to clear your visual range.

We can see her for a split second.

For a split second.

Not knowing how or why, I open a line of telepathic connection with the spirit of Christmas.

Just as she blinks out, I have to spend a hope to do it, which I do, and I just think, we are going to punish you,

German style.

But I think that holds, right?

Does the telepathy hold?

Yeah.

And you, keeping mine on it, as it vanishes from sight, you do see and notice very directly the direction that it's traveling and where it's settling, which is in the direction of the Spring Vale Springs high school.

Oh!

High school!

He's going to be so best.

I'm just gonna say, I feel really relaxed right now, but also, like, this isn't so bad.

What if we just stayed this way?

I mean, she's got a point.

I have no hands.

And you will melt at some point.

That's what we're going to point.

Not if it's always Christmas.

What's happening to my job?

I'm going very slowly turn around and see what's happening to my the video arcade behind me that I need to be okay because that's where I get my money.

Okay, well you glance back and look at it.

Beyond the fact that the exterior is completely encased in like a massive tangle of dark German forest wood and writhing branches and root,

the normal, like flashing interior glow of the arcade is quite dull, as many of the machines have also been consumed and destroyed by the extent of the.

You guys took a short rest, kind of reading some books, and in the interim, the arcade has been demolished.

But you see movement from the inside as something that was summoned by the spirit is currently trying to claw its way from the middle of the street.

No, we should not stay here.

Should we just barricade the outside of the arcade?

Strap it in there.

Yo, we don't want to take the car.

Let's keep going.

Yeah, trash.

Let's push some cars into the front of the store.

Whoa.

Cars?

We're huge.

If we're running, then that's fine.

And I'm going to,

not even knowing what I'm doing, I'm going to cast a veil of shadows.

Okay.

And I'm just going to sweep my arm angrily at the store.

And this living shadow is just going to come up from the front of the store and blanketed in darkness.

Whatever's inside can no longer see out.

But if it comes out, I can see through it.

Only me.

And the two of you are going to try and push a car up in front of it?

Yeah, I get down on all fours and start kicking backward against

a Volkswagen.

Yeah, it's an old beater that's probably like belonged to one of the night shifts somewhere in the nearby buildings there, but you start

kicking into the back of it.

I don't help.

I just bang my symbols above his head.

All right.

Well, Well, okay, so you would make a strength.

Yeah.

I'm going to try to help too.

Can I help him?

If you want to spend a hope to go ahead and

I just rolled, I don't think, the other shadows.

I think I'm stronger than I look.

Never mind.

I believe it.

First off, would you roll with hope or fear?

Oh, me?

Hope.

Oh, okay.

So you can open that.

I got a 13 with hope.

Okay.

Am I rolling too?

Or?

No, no, you spent a hope to give him an A, so you added E6 to that.

I'm actually going to.

That's a 19 with hope.

That'll do.

That's right.

So one heavy donkey kick.

Crack!

The car stents in on its side and

speeds up and slams into the front.

The exterior boundary and the forest kind of curl over it, and it seems to be a pretty heavy barrier to the front.

As you hear the impact of something banging from the inside of the arcade, now trying to push out, but unable to break free this moment.

Okay, this is crazy.

I'm sorry, I've been ghosting you in the cafeteria for a week.

I just got caught up with my friends in the drama department, and that was wrong.

I've been naughty.

I'm ready to be nice.

Are you guys like together?

No!

No, I'm pretty sure that

he's been hanging out and doing some hippie-pitting.

What?

Is that true?

Listen, maybe if his abs look like that all the time,

which is what I'm saying.

Do we really need to change anything?

I have no vagina.

How can you even check you have no hands.

I can check.

No!

Can we just go?

You look like an upside-down cop.

This was a mistake.

We know.

We knew from the beginning.

So, with the arcade temporarily secured, are you heading towards the heist?

Yes, yes.

Riley, didn't you ever hear any stories while you were in Berlin about some creepy holiday spirit?

I mean,

everything in Germany is a little creepy,

you know?

Like, I don't know.

I'm.

Yes,

but that's why we looked at all the comic books.

Do I remember anything?

Don't you have like

an experience?

Yes!

Because I spent time overseas and I've used it like three times and nothing just helps.

Wait a minute.

Make a knowledge roll, please.

And you can spend a hope to add your experience overseas towards us.

Fine.

Okay, well, it rolled with hope.

So spend the hope, get the hope back.

17.

With hope.

Nothing about the spirit specifically, but thinking back to the box,

you kind of want to, you have an inkling to inspect it and see if you can borrow it quickly from Gwenny.

Just grab it.

Just put your hand in there and grab it.

Go for it.

Go for it.

That's not it.

That's my old.

Oh man, you're leaking all over the place.

There it is.

She got my box.

She found it.

Hand is numb.

I am that a bed.

I'm done.

Okay.

So looking towards it, you can pick up amongst like the weird runes that were there, there is very faint Germanic writing.

That's my thing.

Like along the very baseline of it, that almost looks like it matches the wood grain.

Yeah, I saw this.

The best you can make out with rudimentary German that you know is it it's like words that speak of like

emotion

rain

rain rain

redemption it's it's like having a hard time finding out what it actually means and you kind of it has something sort of some sort of emotion and water and and

redemption punishment

water

like rain emotion punishment

and it ha and and these words seem to

seem to have something to do with the box's intent and construction

rain

emotion like rain like rain from the sky maybe rain is it in German or is it in runes?

Well it's in German, but it's amongst the various runes that are dark along the box and you you can't can you speak read German?

I can just pick up like the basics.

Are there more words in German?

Yeah.

Maybe we should check the German class in the high school.

Maybe they would have like a textbook or something?

Mr.

D'Angelo's class?

Yeah.

Let's go.

Great ideas.

I mean, let's go.

Alrighty.

I mean, or maybe we should just go after the spirit so it doesn't keep turning other things into monsters.

I don't know.

Well, it's at the high school language.

Okay, okay, okay, okay, okay.

All right, let's go.

Should I put this back in your balls?

Put the box back in the balls?

And up there, not there.

There we go.

That's a little better.

One ball's bigger than the other one.

As you continue trekking towards the

towards the high school,

the snowfall gets more intense and the wind begins to pick up.

The sense of a coming blizzard begins to grow with your passage and the path carved of strange holiday mutation throughout

Springvale Springs.

You watch as the

entire path there is just this mass of fast-growing trees.

Now icicles seeming to almost protrude from them sourcelessly.

The very moisture in the air being to freeze throughout.

You come to the exterior fence line of the actual high school perimeter and there where once there was a playground you see these columns these like jagged monoliths of ice that now push through, the swings themselves torn free from the ground and hanging at an odd angle, the chains broken.

You can see all manner of heavy trees climbing up the outside of the main high school building.

You can see the faintest bit of light in the inside of the halls.

It is Christmas Eve, and likely there's no school happening.

But you get the sense that at least the spirit has taken up residence in there in some way.

High school!

All right, Tristan.

German class.

Let's go.

All right, through the front door or one of the windows?

A window.

We shouldn't have,

right?

I mean,

it knows we're coming.

Be brave, Bethany.

Be a Blake.

Just deal with it, Bethany.

Just deal with it, Bethany.

All right, let's go through the front.

Okay.

We all continue onward, hearing the

of windows, glass breaking from the inside out as you see the expanding holly bushes beginning to fill out from the inside You come to the front doors the two massive glass doors that greet school in the mornings But now you can see it while locked from the other side and the chain affixed to it by whatever security's been set within Mentally I send out all right you little weirdo We're coming in the back entrance and we're gonna fuck you up

Nice nice

Redirect and then we break the window and the doors.

Are they glass doors or are they wooden doors?

Just break the glass.

Okay.

Or are you the one to be the one to break it?

I got it.

Tanner, go ahead and roll for strength for me, please.

Balls.

It's a 14 with fear.

Working with fear is not too bad.

You smash into it and it cracks, but your shoulder kind of pops a little bit.

You take a stress from the impact because you feel like you may have done a little bit of damage to your shoulder that you're probably gonna feel in the morning.

But it does crack, and you figure with one heavy one additional swipe, you do manage to push through.

Not like a heavy breaking the doors open, but kind of like force your way through the glass.

It's a little awkward, and you kind of scratch yourself as you push through, but you do manage to force enough room for other people to get through.

This way.

All right, are we going to German class or are we going to go find this thing?

All we know is it needs rain.

set off the sprinklers and

interesting schools.

Do we want to try to find a German English dictionary in D'Angelo's class to try to translate the rest of the box?

You guys go after it.

You and me.

Let's go to the German class.

We'll meet you there.

Okay.

All right.

Go.

Where?

So who's going to the German class?

I grab Bethany and stick around my horn and start stalking down the hallway.

Okay, so the two of you are heading towards D'Angelo's class.

The rest of you are.

Maybe we can go find the spirit and distract it.

Yeah.

Alright, we'll try and get it pinned down.

Okay, fair enough.

Godspeed.

So, thanks, Finn.

Thanks, Benny.

As you both begin to divide off down two different hallways, the fluorescent lights in the ceiling are flickering.

One of them kind of breaks as roots begin to push through from the ceiling and begin to kind of gnarl down and close off part of the shi-way.

You kind of dark past before they're even close to touching you, but now the hallways are growing dark.

You are now stepping through pitch black.

Can any of you see in the dark?

I have light up hands.

But you're going to German class.

We're going the other way.

The other troop here.

I think I might.

Oh, you're talking to the other troop?

Either troop.

We have an answer to one.

I have, yeah, when I'm

low light living, so I think I can actually, yeah, I'm.

So you can see pretty well.

Yeah.

All right.

So this is my point.

Oh, also, I have pressed the digitation, so I can illuminate a room.

Yeah, all right.

So, yes, you guys actually have light sources on both points.

As you're kind of spreading off to the different chambers, it's cold and it's quiet.

Those heading to D'Angelo's chamber,

you turn one corner and you see a long beam of light sitting amongst the darkness that just kind of hits one of the far walls, leaving what was like a spotlight.

You know, I think if we live through this, you should really consider the drama department.

You've shown a lot of presence tonight, and I think you could bring that to the stage.

Thank you.

maybe we should find the german book

do you speak german

nine

i'm not talking about math i'm talking about german

what is that wait what is that wait what what is what is that light what is that light you approach get closer to it you see the light is shining on what looks like a locker

and you find the source of the light across the hall where there's like kind of a t-intersection and it looks like the edge of a flashlight that's set on the ground

Lighting up a certain locker or does it seem like a trap?

I don't know

oh God or somebody was mugged and their flashlight fell go check it out Okay, yeah, I'm gonna fly I'm gonna fly over to the the

downed flashlight

avoiding the light beam.

All right, you hover above and flutter towards the t-intersection to the right the flashlight is indeed laying on the ground and about five or so feet from it, you see a person who is sitting, kind of slumped against the wall.

At the first glance, you can see with your arm lights as you kind of look,

you see a security guard in uniform.

You know Lenny Cors.

He's the security guard of, one of the handful of security guards for Springvale Springs High School.

It looks like he was doing the evening shift of security here in high school.

And you kind of see his face.

But what you see more intensely is the trail of blood that's coming from his jaw.

No.

And And kind of looking down his body, you can see Hasa's midsection is a massive laceration.

It looks like he was

completely gutted from end to end.

Someone had disemboweled him.

And what you see emerging from that massive wound that has cut him from side to side are tufts of hay and trash.

And his entrails have been kind of scattered on the ground around him.

I miss Hanukkah.

But he's just a corpse.

He's not moving.

No.

Fairy dale.

Oh, my God.

We'll avenge you.

Are we in the German room?

This is on the way.

Oh, God.

But you also hear like a strange

creaking and scratching sound echoing down one of the far halls.

Shit.

We gotta figure it out, right?

We gotta figure it out.

We'll go to selfie quickly.

I grab the flashlight, I click it off because we've got your hands, and I stick it in my satchel.

Okay.

And I stalk forward with Bethany on one of my forehorns.

Yeah.

Towards the sack or toward the classroom.

Towards the classroom.

We're on a mission.

All right.

You both approach the classroom and kind of head for the opening door, and you hear what sounds like something rummaging, some sort of like movement of materials.

You hear a desk kind of a

scrape and kind of a grunting sound.

What does it look like?

Immediately, the like overhead first kind of flickers.

And you see two hunched, furry humanoid creatures with massive curled horns and pointed ears, like smaller versions of your compatriot here, of Tristan's transformed form, and they both kind of like

one of them kind of begins to look over past and kind of turns out to the the other kind of lowly guttering under its breath like

the Frau.

The Frau demanding satisfaction.

They both go charging towards you both.

Just on instinct, I light up my horns and eyes with flame and use enrapture and shadows grow on the book walls behind me and a giant devilish Krampus form just flickers on the back wall as embers burn in my eyes.

On a spell cast, roll against a target within close range.

Nope, I've got one for multiple people.

All adversaries in front of you within close range.

Let me make a spellcast roll.

Okay, so that's presence.

Alrighty.

Shit, boss.

That is...

I'm going to use my own rally die.

That is 10,

13.

Gets me up to 19.

Okay.

Okay.

19 seeds on both.

Go ahead to roll damage.

That's not damage.

I have just hypnotized them.

Oh.

And multiple miniature

hairy demons like them surround me.

So I look like I've got a gang and they all have little tiny tree toppers on one horn on the side.

They both go from like a rummaging charge towards you to like a stop and a stare.

And you can see like that they're a little bit squatter and wider.

They're like large eyes kind of burning black with like a little red pupil, big sharp teeth and like a heavy thick saliva.

They're still burly, but they're not quite as like tall and thin like you, but they're very similar in appearance.

You have read some sort of a story in the graphic novels that you've gone through about something called a stragelen,

which are these kind of squat horned demon-like creatures.

They travel in a pack.

They travel in a pack around their Lieden, their Frau.

While they're held in this place, we're gonna come to the other group here.

The rest of you are currently continuing to produce the interior.

We're just going down the hall, trying to listen for sounds.

All right, who's leading the charge on searching for the spirit?

Just peas and carrots to clean up.

They all mark a stress and they are stunned in this pinprick moment.

Good to know.

Over to you.

I'm still tracking the spirit.

Okay, yeah, of course.

All right, that's true.

You know it now, which you don't have to roll for that.

Perfect.

Rangers, baby.

All right.

Getting behind Riley.

You begin to maneuver through some of the various kind of opening classroom arrays, eventually coming past the G building, which is where a lot of the students would gather,

and then heading what looks like the direction of the gymnasium that's affixed to the southern side of the main building.

But at that point, where you arrive, you can see the hallway itself is completely choked with trees and branches.

I think the spirit's through here.

Wow, you're so cool.

Rangers are so cool.

In Daggerheart.

You're so mean now.

I'll take my two symbols and I'll say, let's clear a path.

And I'll start hacking away at the brambles that are in the hallway in front of us, trying to clear an opening.

Go for it.

Are you trying to do damage to the brambles?

Yes.

All right, go for it.

That is

4, 11, and that's 15 with hope

to hit the brambles.

15 with hope.

That succeeds.

Go ahead and roll down.

Amazing.

Plus 6.

That was worse.

9.

That is 14 points of damage.

14 points of hit.

Alright, so you tear through a big section of it.

You watch as it breaks away.

I'm going to go ahead and spend a fear as the remaining grasping holly around you begins to reach out and tear towards you to try to pull you into it from the shadows.

So I need you to make an agility reaction roll for me, please.

Agility plus two.

Oh, that sucks.

Oh, that's nine with fear.

That's a fail.

You immediately suffer six points of physical damage, and you are restrained and vulnerable as the Holly's pulling Tanner into the actual brush.

She's broken through.

I'm gonna talk to the Holly and the Brambles

with nature's tongue, which is an ability that I have, and I can't.

Get to talking.

I'm restrained, indeed.

All right, I'm gonna make it into Super.

Okay.

Okay.

Okay.

I know it was so close to a crit.

That is a

18 with fear.

Okay, 18 with fear.

I'll take the fear on that.

Alright.

So you begin to speak towards.

You kind of magically all of a sudden feel like you can connect and

understand the nearby Flora.

What is it you want to speak to?

Hey!

Brambles and La Hollyberry!

I don't know why I'm talking to them.

Can you understand me?

You hear a series of strange, like, almost childlike voices almost singing in unison around you, just kind of...

Nope.

Nope.

That's nice.

Kill it with fire.

And you, it's almost like you can hear all of

the growth in here.

I hear them all.

Happy and jolly with the spirit, and it wants to just grow and consume.

Oh my god.

Alright.

Kitkin, can you let my friend go, please?

We're just trying to walk through you.

Make a presence.

Roll for me, please.

I'll assist.

I'll burn a hope and assist her.

Okay.

Yeah, we're trying to move through.

We're trying to make things better for you and me.

Okay.

Oh, okay.

Okay, okay, okay.

Having a holly, jolly Christmas.

That's 16 with hope.

Take a hope.

Hey, hey, hey.

The song continues for a moment.

How beautiful.

You creep sweat.

I wasn't fucked up at all.

As it begins to kind of appeal to your mind, you.

The words leave your mouth and it seems like it pulls away for you.

And it kind of leaves an opening for you and your friends.

But

they do not let go of Tanner.

I'll get you out.

Fireball.

Woo!

Yes.

Let's go.

Not great.

Not great.

It's a nine with fear.

Oh, wait.

Twelve with fear.

Twelve with fear.

Okay.

That actually is enough of the difficulty.

Just barely.

Alright, so.

So I'm going to roll 2d20 for damage.

Yeah, plus five.

So 21 points of fire.

Oh, so

as this.

It's okay.

It's alright.

Get out of there, Tanner!

Everything is now screaming in your mind.

All the trees and the hall, all the nature around you is just screaming as it burns and withers and crumbles into cinders.

Tanner is released.

And you are set down in the ground as the flames begin to curl and burn into the gymnasium itself, which is now a choked, dense, deep, dark German nightmare forest.

Flames now beginning to slowly burn and trail within you.

Did Tanner take any damage?

Fuck yeah.

I'm happening to use my bone ability brace to burn an armor slot using an additional hope because fucking shit, that was hot.

damn way to light the menorah ralph

it's a miracle

so as you all begin to slowly trek into the gymnasium towards what awaits you in this space that you know to be the spirit its presence not far from where you stand the two of you now are up there in the room you go ahead and like watch these these stragglers kind of stand there staring off in this space these weird kind of illusionary versions of themselves

I just want to fly in over them and avoid them, and just grab a textbook and any other books that seem Germany on the desk.

Easy enough to do.

You grab there are all manner of dictionaries and various instructional booklets.

You know, there's German one, German two, German three, advanced AP German.

I'll grab a whole chunk of it.

Yeah, German Christmas stories.

Sure.

Sure.

It's sweet.

So you find one there, yeah.

You grab them up real fast.

How long does that last?

It.

Well, I don't know, but as soon as I cast it, the next thing I do while uh Bethany is checking the shelves, I will say, you have new orders.

You're meant to protect the perimeter of the school.

Go!

And I will try to deceive them or persuade.

Okay, all right.

Uh,

so go ahead and roll a presence check for me.

Yeah.

Uh, I can spend a hope to add a d4 to the roll, and I do it at advantage to deceive or trick for death deceiver.

So it's at advantage, and I add a d4.

So a d4 and a d6, if I'm understanding that correctly.

All right.

Terrible.

4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 with hope.

Well, you gain a hope.

That's the good one.

Yeah.

But both of the entities kind of look over at you and go.

The Frau needs to charge.

And they both break free from their current element there and rush towards you.

Both of them are going to take a strike at you.

They're going to go ahead and spend the fear to do a group attack because they are both minions.

Oh no!

As that, that is going to be a natural one.

Okay.

So they miss you very intensely as they both

skid across the ground, like face first.

Across the wood.

What are you both doing?

I'm just, I'm going to, yeah, we're just going to get away as we can, if we can.

You want to run?

Maybe we should just run.

All right.

I grab her out of the air.

Just go fleeing out of the out of the back to where you came from.

Yeah.

Yeah.

You both go charging back, kind of follow back, hopefully to find out where your friends were going and kind of corner off.

Suddenly you hear a massive

scream.

That sounds like Tanner.

You go rushing to try and catch up with them while the rest of you have stepped inside this massive forest.

You can see the faint blue glow kind of drifting in the air, and you hear what sounds like chattering conversation.

Can I understand it?

It is in German.

Go ahead and make a knowledge roll for me.

You burned up all my Anakin Skywalker.

I will once again use spend time overseas.

You really should have like studied the language while you were there.

I was on an American Army base.

What do you want from me?

Effort, better?

I didn't even want to be here tonight.

You guys suck.

Sorry.

16 with fear.

16 with fear?

Okay.

So

as you are trying to kind of listen in,

there are two voices here.

You hear the spirit speaking in German, and the best you can make out are broken bits of,

do not worry.

Some are to come, and many more throughout the city and beyond.

The other voice goes,

Good.

I long

for more.

Bring them into

us.

Oh no.

This might be a trap.

Shoot!

Not a vaun trap!

What if it's the Von Track?

Oh my gosh!

What if this whole thing is Waterfall false?

Is Waterfall false?

This is because of homecoming, isn't it?

When we fucking stop their asses!

12 days of Christmas, 12 hours.

At this point, both Tristan and Bethany catch up to your truth.

We found German books!

I found the Vontra!

Can you read this?

Oh, let me tell you, let me try.

Could come here.

Find the words on the box.

Okay, okay, okay.

You hear a sound.

There's two of them.

There's two of them.

You hear in German.

I smell.

All right.

All right.

They're coming for us.

I think we should hide while we try and read real quick.

Hide in the trees.

Hello.

Okay.

All right, let's make a group stealth attempt here.

Who's going to be discharged?

I'm going to cast a mysterious mist around us, concealing us.

Okay, indeed.

This mist evaporates from around you.

Still, I beat you.

Oh, Oh, you very much get it.

Hope or fear.

With hope, 21.

As you all kind of feel this mist surround you and encompass the space, you also hear.

What is this?

You hear this creepy scratching sound, and the voice in Germany once more goes, Find us, find them.

They're looking for us.

You hear now multiple feet moving and other small guttural.

They want children!

Technically, we're not children!

Oh, yeah!

That's true!

I had a bar mitzvah.

I'm a man now.

Right.

Yeah.

So I'm fine.

Who's searching the book?

I guess I will.

Plus, Tanner is 22.

With the book, as you're like, I think they're going to take some minute to do so, to kind of read through and kind of match the words on the box that you recall with what you find.

It wasn't rain.

It was tears.

The box needs tears

be activated.

It needs to absorb the emotion of the punished children to close the loop on the spirits intent.

Wait a second.

How are we gonna

feel emotions?

It's like someone would need to.

You're a fucking loser.

You're a loser.

I can't stand you.

I can't stand your stupid mom.

She doesn't deserve to be with my dad.

Riley sees what's happening and just starts slowly.

Yeah.

We start moving the box

under the deer.

Your breath smells bad.

Your feet are small.

And I've always thought you were a dork.

I mean,

I was hoping that Tristan was going to read us a dramatic monologue, but

that's way worse.

Dark shadows of strange straggling creatures pulling through the branches and starting to get close.

Try harder!

I can't make dry!

Stop at my grasp of me!

I'll go away with my candlestick!

Do we ever...

Do we have a chance?

No.

No!

The tears begin to flow.

At about the time, a voice goes,

The branches curl back, and you watch as this hulking hag-type shape steps out of the shadow.

You see a crone-like woman, tall, maybe like 10 feet to the shoulder, with this massive shawl around her face, where her nose is.

A crooked iron nose replaces it in the middle of her face.

Her foot steps forward.

One of her feet is a swollen swan foot.

You watch as she pulls forward, holding on one hand the stick with a large satchel over her shoulder, her other arm hidden within her robes.

And she goes,

Have you children been good?

Tanner,

let's do it.

Hold him off.

Let's show this witch how rampage works.

What are you doing?

We are both climbing rampage style all the way up there.

We're just gonna.

There's cherries in this witch.

Let's go.

Let's go.

So that's a tag team attack.

Are you doing a tag team attack?

Yeah, tag team attack.

Alright, so whoever's telling that, spend the hope.

And I'll also use my blade ability, a soldier's bond, once for a long rest.

When I compliment someone to ask them something they're good at, you both gained three hope.

Yo, brother, your stories send me.

Let's go.

Let's be body.

Where am I hoping?

Oh bitch, 19 with hope.

Yeah!

Also 19 with

your new animal.

And it's the same age as Tanner!

So

that is indeed a success.

You both get a shout out of success in that one.

So go ahead and roll damage for both of you and then add them together.

No problem.

That was really high.

Oh, that's pretty good.

Just like you.

And

I don't get

a bonus because technically we're both a melee.

Yeah, so that's.

We got two baddies, right?

Yeah, it's 16.

There are Stragla like crawling through the trees.

They haven't gotten to you yet.

The Frau is currently invisible and they're attacking her, and the spirit is somewhere in the wood.

18?

18.

28 for me.

Ooh, so that is a total at together.

That's going to be.

26.

Yeah.

All right.

Yeah, that is going to be

severe wounds to

her.

That's what happens when you mess with DNT, baby.

All right, that's awesome.

I'm immediately going to spend enough fear to go ahead and act.

No!

Frau Perchsta.

No!

So she is going to go ahead and pull out the other arm that was hidden, pulls out this long, bloody, curved knife that was within.

And she is first going to go ahead and interrogate

you, Dylan.

Say.

Ah, you're not a child.

I need you to

make a presence reaction roll for me.

Oh, boy.

Those aren't 12s.

Oh, those are D.

Oh, thank God.

Thank you.

That would have been bad.

That's

11.

Oh, I appeared.

Oh, that's mine.

Alright, that's a failure.

So you are now marked as naughty by perched.

Fair.

Spending another beer for Relentless to go and troll up.

She's not going to apply.

And she pulls out her blade and it's going to do a massive strike in your direction.

That's going to be

14 to hit.

It does, it would, except earlier I pulled up, I put up a

spell that brings my evasion up to 15, which the rogues dodge.

Woo!

So that'll do it.

Cool.

Goes wide.

However, I'm really going to follow that up by spending another fear

to activate the Straggler minions around here as Frau goes, come forth, Straggler!

Take down the children!

And they all of them go, of course, Frau Pashta!

And they all begin to just rummage out this.

All of a sudden, this army of like four, six, eight of the Stragla beasts begin to pour out of the nearby bushes and begin to swarm you, Dylan, as you miss, dodge out of her attack.

So spending another fear to go ahead and activate their group attack.

Take me instead!

That's great.

That one.

Bitch!

That's gonna be a five to hit you.

That up is man, rolling bad on that opening round.

That's okay.

That happens.

Can I retaliate yet or no?

Or is there a...

If you want to, I mean, I just finished my ghost.

Since I've just got all of them swarming me right now, and I assume they're all in

very close range.

They are, they'll both indie.

I'm gonna cast Rain of Blades.

Okay.

So

I'm gonna make a spellcast roll and I'm actually gonna use this D6.

He's like, well, yeah, I want it.

I'd actually

see it.

I don't know how to do this one.

Okay, I'm gonna add this too, just for fun.

That's not bad.

That's

nine,

21 with fear.

Whoa.

21 with fear.

That'll definitely hit us.

And that basically means I'm spinning my little ice ball on a chain around, and ice daggers are just flying in every bloody direction.

There's a whirlwind of them.

Alrighty.

Superball damage that succeeds against them.

Yeah, it's

targets you succeed against.

I'll get

2d8 plus 2.

So...

None of them are vulnerable, so that's alright.

No.

So that's 6.

The only vulnerable one is the spirit that is slightly higher.

That's 12 points of damage each.

Okay, so all the Stragula dreaming all get spent off and like thrown.

The blades like spin them to the wall, like

and they all kind of like go unconscious, all immediately just blasted against it.

Unless

I'm going to spend a fear to immediately activate the spirit of holiday cheer.

Shit.

And it's going to inspire myth.

And it's going to bring three of them back.

No, no.

The spirit goes out.

Please.

It is too soon to give up.

They must all know what it's like to be punished.

Jesus.

But however, it's back to play for you.

Wait, wait, wait.

I'm gonna grab.

I'm gonna grab the side of his head and force it forward.

You're like collecting the tears.

Just kidding.

You're gonna have to collect the tears.

Here's what I'll do.

I'm gonna go ahead and make this another positive clock here.

So you have to collect enough tears to activate the box.

You've successfully punked one round to do so.

If any of you want to try and further this process, it is going to be a series of checks based on what you want to try and do to get more tears out of your good friend Ralph.

We can't, other, can we get tears from other sources?

If anyone wants to try and do so.

I have a confession.

Why are you looking at me?

You seem like the safe person to tell this to.

When I had to leave the army base in Berlin, I had to leave behind my pet rat.

His name was Gorbachev.

My dad used to always call him a rat bastard, so I thought it was really clever.

And I loved him so much.

And he was my best friend.

And when we left the army base,

I let him out into the wilds.

And he's probably dead.

And I'm a bad rat, Bob.

I miss you, Gerget.

Go ahead and make eight presents roll.

Oh, yeah.

Come on.

Oh, my God.

Jeez.

Okay.

This is important.

I'm going to use my rally die.

Rogy.

Oh, yeah, yo, yay.

Uh, okay.

20.

Yeah, that's great.

You squeeze out some true missing your rat tears.

You watch as the tears begin to absorb, it just darkens the outside, and you're hoping something happens, but you begin to watch some of the runes.

Like,

yes, yes.

And it is starting to react.

Oh, I'm sorry.

That's a secondary.

I just hugged Ralph.

I'm going to spend a fear now to activate Falpochta once more.

Angrily is going to go ahead and slash out towards you, Dylan.

Oh my god.

That's going to be a 19 19 to hit you.

Oh, yeah, that is.

Alright, since you are considered, you are marked as naughty by her, she does an additional D12 damage.

That's judgmental.

Oh my gosh.

That's going to be...

Yeah.

Yep.

32 points of physical damage.

As her blade suddenly slashes across your chest twice and then jams it into your torso through your shoulder.

I'm going to drop that down to a major.

Because Al.

Fair.

A major.

As a reaction, reaction, I'm going to spend another fear, and she's going to attempt to disembowel you.

That is going to be

16 to hit.

That hits.

No!

With that, you take an additional

18 points of physical damage.

I'm going to use another armor and drop that down to minor.

Okay.

And the blade is stuck in you and she's like,

you will be filled with the garbage you are, Tyler.

Oh, God.

Oh, good.

But that finishes her goat's back.

Plays back to you.

Who wants to do what?

I want to fly down and help Dylan.

Okay.

Can I fly over and help him?

Sure, you fly over and she's not up against it.

Some of the stragglers are starting to pull themselves free of the nearby trees.

Yeah, I'm going to run.

Don't worry about him.

We got to finish her.

What?

We got to finish her!

Dylan's about to be disavowed!

I'm going to run forward and...

I'm sorry.

Forceful push.

Forceful push her to try to get her away from him.

I'm gonna like body check her.

Do it, do it.

Okay.

You care about him, but you don't care about me.

That is

16.

A 16.

With hope.

So you take a hope.

That is a success against the Frau.

Okay.

Okay.

I do want to note this real fast.

Sorry.

Because Frau Prote is terrifying.

Whenever she successfully attacks a player, all PCs within close range lose a hope, and I gain a fear.

Oh,

you lose a hope.

I didn't have one.

Lose a hope.

So the two of you do.

Damn.

Oh, God.

And then I can

spend a hope to make her temporarily vulnerable.

And I'm going to get to add a D6 to my attack.

Go for it.

Okay.

That was 14 plus 6 is 20.

24 points of damage.

24 points damage.

It's a minor wound or a major wound to her.

So she takes two hit points.

As you push her back,

she splashes into it.

The rope kind of pulls open.

You can see like the gnarled grandma leg on one side and the weird twisted bird leg on the other.

And you can see now the bag swings open and inside the bag are tufts of hay, rocks, and garbage, what you saw stuffed in the abdomen of the security guard earlier.

If If there's a way to punch in really quick, I'm just going to attempt to cast shadow bind on the witch really quickly.

Sure.

So I'm bleeding out and

I summon

all of the shadows to start to pulse and tentacles of shadow go in and go to grab her.

Okay.

And that's a

spellcast roll.

Oh, come on.

Don't forget me.

Oh my God.

No, no.

What was it?

It was three.

Enjoy your fear.

Actually, it was six.

Enjoy your fear.

Okay, I'll take that fear.

As the shadows try and curl around, and she goes, Fool, I am the shadows.

And it's gonna rush forward towards you immediately after to try and finish you off.

That she can't.

No!

No, Kylan!

That's gonna be another 16 to hit.

No, I am your shield.

I'm gonna step in front.

Okay, mark that stress and step in front.

You take.

38 points of physical damage.

But I'm unstoppable right now, so I'm going to take that

severe and mark it down to major.

Okay.

And then I'm going to use my armor and mark it down to minor.

Oh, wow.

Hell yeah.

That's how you do it.

Wow.

And then I'm going to spend a fear here.

She didn't say, hit, so I actually and I'm gonna use vengeance.

I'm gonna spend a hope and I'm gonna make her take

I'm gonna gain a stress plot and I'm gonna make her take a hit point.

Go for it.

Also, all three of you lose a hope because she successfully struck you and you're all next to her in close range.

So you feel just her presence each like a successful strike on her.

It like saps your

ability to think you can get out of this, but you keep trying to push through.

Alright, so you go ahead and do vengeance strike on her to take to a hit point.

You got it.

All right.

From that, the spirit of holiday cheers.

I'm going to go ahead and and spend a fear to get in there and another fear to inspire myth.

Which two more of the three more the struggle to get up.

So now six are

in the middle of this chaos.

I see Dylan almost get eviscerated.

I think we're all gonna die.

I focus on the fact that my father has never thought I've been enough, and that is why I fled to the stage, because I could never sculpt like him.

My body goes slack, and I begin to wander towards Ralph in the box.

To be.

Or not to be.

I mean, that's kind of the question.

Whether it is nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune or to take arms against a sea of weird Christmas shit

And by opposing End them, to die, to weep.

And with that, I also, for good measure, pluck out a bunch of giant fucking Krampus nose hairs

and try to cry in the box.

Go ahead and roll performance, check it.

Get him in there.

Okay.

Come on.

I'll assist him.

I'll assist him.

Come on.

By pulling out additional nose hairs.

From the other nostril.

I'm pulling out areola hairs.

All right, so you can add a D6 to the roll.

I kind of like it

No!

Come on!

Okay, one of those was a D10.

One of those is a D10.

Let's not use that one.

Let's use this one.

No!

It's with hope?

7 plus

3 for me is 10.

It's a 15.

Oh,

that's exactly what you need.

My nipples, Donnie!

He sees drops that part of it's real, but part of it is just your thespian acumen.

I'll never make it to Juilliard!

As they drip and soak into the wood, the rest of the runes

are on the side glow, and the inside of the box that was just kind of the dark wood interior suddenly has a golden shimmer, like it's some sort of bottomless space.

And the chain now just kind of floats slightly in the air, like it's weightless.

The fuck is it?

Come here, Kidron!

Get ready!

Get you!

That was with hope, right?

Yes.

All right, so still you guys go.

Where's the Christmas spirit?

Christmas Spirit is now floating up at the top of the trees, like looking down and just kind of helping orchestrate this.

I'm going to throw a mystic tether at her again.

Yes, yes.

Drag her down.

All righty, let's go.

Come on, baby.

Ooh, can I get joint attack and help out with this?

I don't have the hope to spend it.

You can't get it.

I tell you how much does it cost?

It costs three.

Two or three?

It costs three hopes.

I have three.

Oh, I only have two.

I have three.

Can I spend three hope to go ahead and do it?

I will do it.

And I'm going to fly up and try to forceful pusher down down while he's using the tether.

Great.

So you go up above and you come from below.

Both of you guys go ahead and roll for your stealth cast and you go ahead and roll for your attack.

Oh, God.

What'd you roll?

I only rolled a 12.

I rolled.

A 21 with fear.

With fear.

With fear.

So I'll take a fear, but that is a success that you both get to share because you tag team attack.

So describe to me how this looks as you both tag team up on it.

I reach out my long Grinch arm to grab her, and I say to, or the entity, I say to it,

And I'm gonna look past it, straight at Ralphie, and I'm gonna say, I didn't mean any of it.

You're like a brother to me.

And I'm gonna push her as hard as I can.

Shake and Blake.

Frau Perch has set her staff to the side and taking the long blade, what you also didn't see beneath the robe is some sort of katana-like sheath for it.

As she slides into the sheath, and there's like the one-inch, like, thumb flick of it out,

almost like she's preparing to do some sort of massive swirling strike.

But you both catch her off guard as you cast your spell, strike her,

strike past her, up towards the spirit.

The spirit, who's like thinking that you're focusing on the Frau, looks up and sees you just in time and kind of smiles.

As you slam her from on top, gets knocked down about 12 or so feet, right as your magical tether slaps up and grabs and pulls her down.

The spirit gets shunted and slammed into the ground.

Go ahead and roll your damage for that.

I roll 26.

26.

And you roll?

I don't.

This is not a.

Oh, no, it is a 26 is their severe threshold.

So that's three hips

to the spirit.

And she cannot fly.

And I am going to spend a hope to make her vulnerable as well.

You got it.

Spirit is vulnerable.

I'm going to roll over with the box.

Yeah!

Okay.

She's resisting.

I'm gonna use a fear to go ahead and immediately take Frau Percht, who has prepared the blade at the ready, spend another fear to activate a swirling whirlwind strike.

It's going to attack everybody within close range, which at this point is everybody.

It's all of you.

So for that, ooh, that's gonna be

14.

That misses you, and it misses Dylan, I believe.

No, it hits me.

It It hits you.

I'm 13.

Oh, got you.

So that's everybody, but

alrighty.

Everybody around here takes

14 points of physical damage, except for Dylan, who takes 24 points of damage.

And actually, Bethany also takes 24 because you have been naughty this whole time.

I have,

as decided by our VIP.

I'm burning another armor to bring it back.

Good thing I am unstoppable.

Unstoppable, unstoppable.

Because that's going to bring it down to a minor damage for me, and I'm going to use my armor slot so I don't take any damage.

There you go.

But that's my go now.

So where's the spirit?

The spirit is kind of held to the ground currently.

It's taken some damage and it's like resisting and like it's like kind of smiling and still giggling, but it's looking a little nervous.

Kind of looking like you have it helped

I look at Quinn.

Let's do this.

Let's do it.

You're a big kid now.

Woo!

Get in the box, bitch.

Can I assist her?

Yes, you may.

You can spend a hope to go ahead and add a D6 to the roll.

I'm going to need you to make...

A strength or finesse, depending on how you're trying to scoop up the spirit.

I'm going to try to finesse her in there.

Okay.

I'm gonna just get a little wiggle her in there.

Go for it.

Alright.

Because she's resisting the tether and like kind of like

flying around rapidly.

Do I roll the D6?

Do you roll the D6 in that?

It's worth it.

Oh, shit.

Six.

Okay, okay, okay, okay.

Uh, uh, uh.

16.

Plus six?

Or just 16?

That's plus six.

Yes.

Unfortunately, that's.

Shit, no!

Um, oh!

Technically, you could take that hope back because she was vulnerable.

So the roll already had a d6.

You can keep you can keep that hope.

Um,

oh, because the spirit was vulnerable from earlier.

The spirit was vulnerable.

Oh, so I can't also add another d6 on top of that?

Question.

Yeah.

Question.

Since I did say I was going to assist, Rangers focus that has been on the spirit.

When you fail to attack against them, you can end your Ranger's focus to re-roll your duality dice.

Could I do this to allow Gwen?

But Matt, it's Christmas.

Oh, but it's German Christmas.

Wow.

You did a patanga.

And with that valputa, it's going to go ahead and cry and come after you.

How are you looking?

I'm looking real bad.

You look real bad.

It's going to come after dinner.

No, all right.

Oh, no.

That's going to be a 14.

Oh, 13 to hit you.

I am.

And my evasion is 13.

Yeah, my evasion is.

Well, hold on.

Yeah, my evasion is 13.

Always.

So with that.

That is going to be.

What kind of attack is this?

This is the.

The blade.

Okay.

That is going to be 23 points of physical damage.

However.

However, oh, it's physical damage, not magic.

Correct.

Okay, so I'm going to use my parrying.

I'm going to summon an icicle to parry this attack.

Okay.

Are either of of those two a six or a five?

No.

No.

None of your dice are a six or a five.

No.

God.

Okay.

Sorry.

It was a good try, though.

Oh, also, you have disadvantage.

You should have had,

because I'm at one point, which means that because I...

Oh, so I'll take away a D6 from that.

Yeah, I have.

Well, which.

What about disadvantages?

Yeah, your attack would have disadvantage on me.

Okay, so yeah.

That would have reduced by two to an 11, so that would actually be misleading.

All right, there we go.

That's good.

So we'll say, we'll say it narratively, as the strike comes towards you, you send out this icicle, and it like parries it off at the last second that doesn't really talk to you

I'm going to try really quickly to

drop down if there's a shadow I can fall into in the trees I'm going to try and throw myself at a shadow and

actually can I do that or can I not?

Yeah.

We need to get this thing out of the project.

So I'm going to get away from this thing.

Okay.

So you're going to drop into shadow and

I'm going to literally drop myself into a shadow and shadow step into the shadow

of a tree that is closest to this whole disaster.

Easy to do, there's a whole lot of shadow to go around in this video.

Yep, I'm gonna get as close as possible, and now I just disappears out of sight and appears somewhere else in the thick brush.

It's your guys go.

I need help.

We gotta get the shadow.

Can I try and get the box?

Get the box.

Riley!

All right.

Seeing Gwen kind of

stumble a little bit because my hands are slippery.

I'm gonna try and take, and what I

wanna like use my sled and kick it up so I can almost make the box like have more purchase and slam it down on top of her okay

I have respect and I'm gonna spend three hope to assist

so you're still holding the box you just hold on to it as well kick your your sled into the air behind it and use that as additional leverage trying to get it over on top slam it down all right both of you roll either finesse or or strength.

Let's go.

I'm going to use my last hope that I didn't spend before for gnarly kick flip bra.

Let's go.

Okay.

Get it.

Get it.

Let's go.

Damn.

I still can't believe you guys said I was naughty.

You can't.

There are there are a bunch of people in here who know things about you that the rest don't and I think it's fair.

I'm gonna use my finesse.

No wait.

Did I use my finesse?

I use my finesse to cry.

Or my rally dive.

I used my finesse to cry.

What did you roll?

What did you roll?

I rolled a 12.

I rolled a 15.

Alright, so you both take a 15, which is not enough.

Oh!

Now, mind you, the spirit can't escape right now because of the tether, but it is still wiggling around.

It's very, very challenging for it to do.

That brings it back to my.

Wait, wait, though.

Wait, though.

Wait, yeah?

Wait, though.

Wait, though.

What you got?

What I wanted to do last time, but I failed.

Or I couldn't do.

Oh, yeah.

Which

in my Rangers focus to re-roll my die.

You can do that.

Yes!

Yes!

Yes!

Couple by Away!

Come on!

Let's go!

Come on, come on, come on, come on.

Come on, work.

This is the only thing.

She's on the end.

Oh!

It's better.

Math is hard with all you out there.

16!

Oh, wait.

16 is not enough.

Sorry.

Get it,

damn it.

The spirit is moving around, and you can't quite capture with the box.

You're both just trying to.

It's like trying to get that one.

Wait, was that a finesse or an agility roll?

It was finesse or strength.

Your choice.

Yeah.

Is there room to take a shot from the shadows?

Can we just ruffles?

Can I just run

both simple?

Well, unfortunately, on a failure, it comes to me.

Frow no longer can see Dylan and has shifted focus, not from you, because you seem to be kind of hard to go for and it's now going to shift focus over to this large monkey meat sack

with a natural one.

It's not gonna do anything.

Come on, Monkey.

It's back to you.

Let me try to set you up.

Let me try to set you up.

I crawl over weeping.

If these shadows have offended, think but this and all is mended.

I'm crying.

That you have but slumbered here, and I will try to put her to sleep.

The spirit.

Oh, it's it's jackass crap, bro.

Oh, it doesn't do it.

Is this a tag team?

No, it's a spell.

It's an eight with hope.

Good.

Okay, so you take a hope, but it is back to.

Brau is going to continue to unleash one after another towards the large symboled monkey.

That's going to be a 19 to hit.

Hits?

No way.

Take

22 points of physical damage from that strike as the blade shh cards across your chest.

That's severe, but I'm going to use my blade ability to get back up and I'm going to use a mark of stress to reduce the severity by one.

Let's go.

There's still two hit points though.

God damn it.

Correct.

However, that strike does gain it a fear and all of you lose a hope.

Oh.

We really need to start rolling with success.

Yeah, yes.

So.

Can I try and return the attack?

If you'd like to, sure.

Yeah, I'm going to jump in the air with both symbols and I'm just going to try and fucking DDT elbow drop this motherfucker into the box.

Let's go.

Ah, that is plus 3, 7, 15, 16, 17, 18, 18 with hope.

18 with hope will succeed.

Come on!

2D 12 double nines on this bitch plus 6

24!

Woo!

24 damage.

24 damage!

That's great.

That's a major wound.

That's two hit points off.

Krau Perchta is looking a little ragged.

Pulls back

from the impact.

Spits this kind of black, weird blood that hits the ground like it burns and hisses and hits.

Oh, you've been very naughty.

Were you attacking her or trying to get the thing in the box?

Get the thing in the box.

Shove her in the box.

Oh, this is.

Oh, sorry, this is against the

spirit of Christmas Christmas.

Spirit of Christmas.

And you rolled a.

It was 18.

18 would have missed.

Wait,

can I assist him?

I'm not after the roll.

I thought you were going after her.

Sorry.

Okay.

So,

you would try and strike out past the Frau, go towards trying to help the spirit into the box, and you're all now like swarming around and trying to push it in, and it's just wiggling around too much.

Actually, you know what?

It has it's vulnerable, so you get to add a D6 to that.

Oh, that's right!

How do you want to go?

Jesus.

As my large Simeon runs up the side of the wall,

he pulls the symbols off of his hands.

Blood rushing forth.

He spins them up in the air.

Slams it on top of the Spirit of Christmas' head and starts elbow dropping it into the box.

As the box slams it on top of it, you hear the song still beginning to permeate.

It gets louder and louder around as light begins to act.

The trees begin to bend and turn inward.

All the steragola begin to rush out.

Frau Perchtes is, no!

The box hits the ground and light energy

begins to streak out of all sides.

This heavy crack sound

shakes shakes the foundation around you and all the building's walls nearby.

Shift as dust kind of falls from the settled ceiling.

Slowly,

silence begins to take the room as the lid is now clasped onto the box and the wooden hands now hold the spirit of holiday cheer once again within its long ancient sealed space.

Who's crying now?

A moment later, all the trees begin to crumble to ash,

just leaving piles of dust on the ground.

And you feel a soft, warm wind

begin to surround and engulf you, picking up the dust and ash until it's just a cloud of swirling light.

And then as it dissipates, you look down upon your own now restored forms.

Your teenage selves, a little scuffed, a little bloody,

but back to normal.

My skin cleared up.

No.

I'm still bleeding from like a wound in my torso.

I don't think we have magic anymore.

No, no.

It does not feel like

I was at one hit point, so.

You got real close to being real close.

Being disemboweled and stuffed with stones and trash.

I'm gonna like rip the bottom of my skirt off and tie it around Dylan's waist to like staunch the you have fingers again.

I have hands!

cool

wow i'll check too i'm still circumcised

wow

what a party oh guys

the security guard

maybe he'll come back to life

Nah, he's still eviscerated in the hall.

He knew the risks.

That's gonna be one holiday to remember.

Hey, Dylan.

Yeah.

I reach into my wonderer's pack because I can summon anything that I want.

I want some game.

And I pull out Dylan's dad's wallet.

Oh, God.

Told me to keep an eye out for this.

You found it?

Wait, you still have magic?

No, I've just had it this whole time.

I am.

Thank you.

I was going to be in so much trouble for stealing that and then losing it.

Instead, I'm going to be in trouble for bleeding.

Yeah.

Mysteriously.

Still owe me 20 bucks.

And you owe me a favor.

Ralph, I forgot I brought a present for you.

What?

Me?

It's one of my favorite books.

Flowers in the attic.

Oh, my God.

Sorry.

Wow.

Thanks.

Glenny?

You know, I...

Maybe I've been looking at the wrong girl this whole time.

Whoa.

Oh.

I didn't mean.

I mean,

I don't know.

You're gonna need some help when you start your freshman year, right?

Yeah.

I can help you out and just show you around where your locker is and stuff.

I'm really scared to use a locker and to change classes.

That sounds so intense.

Yeah, the bell is really scary the first time you hear it, but then you get used to it.

Okay.

Okay.

Shake on it.

All right.

Oh, so clean me.

Cool.

Well, I'm just gonna go cover up the eviscerated security guard.

Yeah.

You mean loot the body?

You come back to find the Lenny Kors.

He's like coughing on the ground.

And it's like,

and coughs up like a bunch of bloody straw and stones.

And it's like, what the hell just happened?

Run!

What are you?

Who's that?

Run away!

Run away!

Go!

You all go charging out of the

high school as a security guard.

Wait, wait, no, it's your arm!

What?

I didn't drink!

And you all charging off into the night as you see all the snow and ice that have been apparatus from the city slowly melting, and the trees are slowly vanishing.

The town of Springvale Springs, slowly returning to the best of normal you can imagine.

And probably a very confused array of denizens that stepped outside of their homestead this late at night.

You eventually begin to return to gather to the uh well, where were you heading next, I would say?

I think we still have a whole other six-pack of beers in the basement at the Blakes.

How about, you know, how about we drink the beers and then

let's go interrupt and fuck up whatever weird shit your parents are up to.

Let's like move in forever so that they will never be comfortable doing it again.

Or

we go to

the secret tree house, which you all have never let me go in,

and we can all have beers together in there and let our parents continue fucking.

That is the spirit of interest.

Okay.

Let's do it.

Treehouse.

So as you carry

under your arm

a recently sealed artifact of ancient Germanic Christmas nightmare,

what could go wrong?

As we walk away, you hear Tristan in voiceover.

Dear freak, German folklore,

we accept the fact that we had to sacrifice a whole holiday

for whatever it was we did wrong.

But we think you're crazy for making us go through fucking hell.

You see us as you want to see us

in the simplest terms and the most convenient definitions.

But what we found out is that each one of us is a Krampus,

a snowman, a monkey, a Grinch, a dead reindeer.

An abominable snowman, and a treetopper.

Does that answer your question?

Sincerely yours, The Christmas Club.

As the very last image you see before it fades to black is Gwenny looking down at her hand and a little flicker of fire in her fingertips and a confused expression.

And that's where we'll finish the.

Don't, don't, don't, don't.

No, sing the song.

We don't have the rights to do it.

Also, as a note, credit world is not condoned under age drinking.

But no, thank you all so much for joining us tonight.

Sorry, it's so late, you guys.

I know.

Thank you for hanging with us for this wild adventure.

I appreciate you all so much.

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night, I guess.

Thank you for listening to Critical Role.

We hope you enjoyed that exciting adventure and want to come back for more.

If you did, well then please leave a rating and review wherever you stream the Critical Role Podcast Network.

Word of mouth is the best form of advertising and maybe your experience will encourage another listener our way.

Well, see you next time.

Sign what?

The app?

Yeah, sure.

Oh, it rubbed off the screen when I touched it.

Could you sign it again?

Anything to help, I suppose.

Get more than just savings.

Get more with Geico.

Imagine relying on a dozen different software programs to run your business, none of which are connected.

And each one more expensive and more complicated than the last.

That can be pretty stressful.

Now imagine Odo.

Odoo has all the programs you'll ever need and are all connected on one platform.

Doesn't Odo sound amazing?

Let Odo harmonize your business with simple, efficient software that can handle everything for a fraction of the price.

Sign up today at odo.com.

That's odoo.com.