New Moon in Aries, New Puppy, Hello Spring!

New Moon, Who Dis?

 

 

 

New Moon in Aries, New Puppy, Hello Spring!

Spring is here in the PNW.  New Moon in Aries yesterday.  The new puppy arrived the day 

before.  How am I going to resist walking by the chicks, ducklings, and goslings at the feed 

store before game time tomorrow?  I got a big chunk of game prep for the main campaign 

done before Daisy the Kelpie joined the party.  The cats are not Charmed, but the humans 

are failing every Save.  The dinosaurs (chicken flock) are curious, but mostly hungry.  

They’re high on a rat killing frenzy they got into a few weeks back on that Libra Full Moon.  

Wild.  

Ok, on to the Winter Through Spring Gaming Trajectory!  After the most interrupted interval 

of the main campaign AKA Ox Gives Way to Tiger, Etc., we have embraced consistency 

again.  Team Rams explore more of the mysterious and dangerous Domain of Dread, 

Darkon.  

While the late January to early March period disrupted the main campaign, the Solo Grinder 

Campaign (7 sessions), Ctyri Ctvrt Chronicles (8 sessions), and Star Notch Stories 

(2 sessions) games were not only filling some gaming gaps for various players 

(including me!), but some outstanding sessions, emergent storytelling developments, and all 

around great gaming IMHO.  One of my players even ran me through a continuation of his 

version of the LotFP module A Single Small Cut by Michael Curtis.  It was nasty, short, and 

brutish on my first playthrough!  Let’s see if more hirelings, holy water, and equipment can 

get my pack of murderhobos through;)

My Ctyri Ctvrt Chronicles player and myself are playtesting a new system and setting for a 

short period.  During that time, Ctyri Ctvrt Chronicles it on a short pause.  It’s never been on 

a regular schedule, but we have played pretty frequently lately.  Anyway, the playtest 

material has been fun so far we are through a Session 0 (rules and setting quick overview, 

player made 1 character while I made another so I could see how character creation 

worked), a Session 0.5 (player made another character while I skimmed the rules and 

adventure module), and an actual Session 1 with action and adventure!  My initial ballpark 

estimate of playtest was a 5-10 session time frame, but with a better understanding of the 

module I think we’ll wrap up in 5 or fewer sessions.

The Star Notch Stories player is juggling a lot in life right now, so we’re not sure when we’ll 

dip back into the Shudder Mountains.  I do know the moonshine and mysteries will persist 

whether Boy is active or not!

And Solo Grinder Campaign had some epic moments back in the winter months.  The 

seasonal shifts brought significant changes this spring and took me away from the Solo 

gaming momentum I had achieved.  All the farm and ranch kids know the proverbial “When 

there’s day make hay” type of sayings, and it’s not terrible advice, but I’m not sure when my 

Solo gaming kicks back into gear.  I am going to crank out Session 13 of Solo Grinder today 

while Daisy naps.

If you read this far AKA TL,DNR:

• Ox/Tiger (main campaign) played every Sunday night, usually actual play 

  notes up on blogger by Monday or Tuesday morning.

• Ctyri Ctvrt (one on one side campaign) short hiatus, then dive back into 

  Spire of Iron and Crystal!

• Playtesting something fun for a short bit.  Not sure if I’m sharing about 

  what that is because it is not mine to share.  If I do write about it, it will be 

  on Substack!

• Star Notch (the other one on one side campaign) long hiatus?

• Solo Grinder Campaign (my first solo campaign). After the session I play 

  today, I evaluate my schedule for this and see if I can Solo in the Summer?  

  Might just buy a paddle board and fuck off instead, lol;)

Ctyri Ctvrt Chronicles Session #36

 

Room #13, Hello frenz?!?

 

 Session 36- Inside the Spire of Iron and Crystal Part 2

4/1/2026

• Danika’s and Radomir’s teams leave Room #7 and re-enter the 

  central chamber and take the eastern hallway to Room #19 where 

  they encounter a hostile Crystalline Tree that attacks them with its 

  roots.  They collect 12 Gems and re-enter the central chamber and 

  choose the northern door.

• In Room #12, they observe the Astrological Formulae and choose 

  to leave the room via the western door.

• They move past the machinery in Room #10 and enter Rooms #9 

  and #8 where they confront and kill a Gelatinous Cube and collect 

  a few items.

• Over to Room #11, they encounter, fight and kill 5 Slitherrats.

• Rooms #13 and #14, Danika waves at the 3 strange beings floating 

  in the tanks and they make motions to leave, waving the teams away 

  with their hideous claws.  Danika and Radomir decide to sprint across 

  the tank room (#13) to the room beyond it (#14).  That almost kills 

  Pavel and they have to drag him to the treasure room (#14).  They 

  consume some healing potions and pop out to confront the hideous 

  Oozeanderthals.  After a challenging fight, they kill the 

  Oozeanderthals.

• Crystalline Tree killed = 400 XP

• Gelatinous Cube killed = 240 XP

• 5 Slitherrats killed = 600 XP

• 3 Oozeanderthals killed = 360 XP

• 2 Amber 200 GP = 200 XP

• 1 Alexandrite 100 GP = 100 XP

• 1 Amethyst 100 GP = 100 XP

• 1 Chrysoberyl 100 GP = 100 XP

• 1 Coral 100 GP = 100 XP

• 1 Garnet 100 GP = 100 XP

• 1 Jade 100 GP = 100 XP

• 1 Jet 100 GP = 100 XP

• 1 Pearl 100 GP = 100 XP

• 1 Spinel 100 GP = 100 XP

• 1 Tourmaline 100 GP = 100 XP

• 4 Smokey Quartz, Extra Large (bowling ball) 2000 GP = 2000 XP

• 2 Potions of Fly

• 1d8+1 Longsword

• 3 Glow Geodes

• Chunk of Silver = 20 GP = 20 XP

• Dagger 1d4+1, +2 Vs. Goblins, Kobolds, Orcs

• 20 Smokey Quartz 1000 GP = 1000 XP

• 4 Healing Potions (1d6)

• Ivory Wand of Flying (3 Charges)

• Bag of Holding

• A pair of Dark Lenses

• Total XP = 5820 XP

• Danika receives 2910 XP

• Hynek and Hallabera each receive 1455 XP

Ox --->Tiger --->Rabbit --->Dragon --->Snake --->Horse Campaign Session #218

Shelby's dream of Elyra and a Green Shadow Dragon

 

 

 

Session 218- A Return to Barovia Part 68; Darkon 5

4/12/2026

• Rams have set watch and gone to sleep in their suite at 

  Riverview Rest Inn.  No encounters occur for the watch sitters, 

  but those who go to sleep have vivid dreams that begin in a 

  recurring dream situation (callback to Session #181), then morph 

  to reveal information and possible divine communications.

• Shelby finds herself in the Chapel of Castle Ravenloft presiding 

  over a marriage ceremony of tiny puppet/doll Strahd and 

  Patrina Velikovna.  Shelby is wearing her ceremonial Cleric of Tiamat 

  robes in the colors purple, white, red, and brown.  When Shelby 

  pronounces “You may kiss the bride”, Strahd lifts Patrina’s veil and 

  kisses her.  Dream shifts to a strange fertility ritual between tiny 

  puppet/doll Strahd and Patrina performing “consummation” while a 

  couple nearby do the same (Kasimir and Elyra).  Then there is a 

  flashback to Elyra (not pregnant) speaking adoringly to a dark, sinister 

  dragon shape in the mist.  Tiamat’s voice whispers in Shelby’s ear 

  “One of my dangerous daughters protects the elven girl.  Tread 

  carefully here, my loyal servant.”

• Tim has been asked to be a guest at Castle Ravenloft wedding.  

  When he arrives, he discovers that the ceremony is instead a double 

  funeral. He walks up to the coffins and opens the first one which 

  contains a dead Kasimir.  The second coffin bursts open… it’s Elyra 

  and she is giving birth to a dragon scaled baby.  She asks Tim to help 

  her deliver it, Tiamat guides his hands towards the infant….

• Tiamat shows two divergent paths, “Heed or falter; some 

  shadows must be met in courage, others in cunning.”

• Gugula also finds herself in the Chapel of Castle Ravenloft.  She is 

  shocked to find herself not in armor, but instead wearing a wedding 

  dress. She feels quite naked.  Then you take a deep breath to focus 

  and look down to realize you are wearing your armor beneath a 

  spectral wedding gown.  When the priest presiding over the ceremony 

  says “You may kiss the bride”, Gugula is horrified to realize the groom 

  is an ancient, undead Lich King.  He “winks” at her as SHE leans in to 

  kiss him! This isn’t even the wild part, you should see who is in the 

  front row of this wedding ceremony….  Strahd, Patrina, a monster in a 

  jar, a shadowy dragon or two, an Infinite mountain, Elise, the Abbot, 

  the Follower….

• Fecus is a guest at tiny puppet/doll Strahd and Patrina’s wedding.  

  When the priest says the part of the ceremony “Speak now or 

  forever hold your peace” Fecus wants to speak up, but cannot.  

  His throat feels blocked and  he feels his pants get warm.  Last time 

  Fecus had peed his pants in the dream and outside the dream in 

  his bed.  The dream transitions to the 

  fertility ritual taking place in a series of shallow, glowing pools in an 

  amber tinted Grotto.  Participants are tiny puppet/doll Strahd and a 

  tiny puppet/doll Patrina, their strings being pulled by different 

  shadowy figures. And Elyra and Kasimir, real and in the flesh, doing 

  what you do to make a child.  Now the dream transitions to a shrieking 

  and insane Elyra, grieving and birthing simultaneously….

• Victor dreams of his father berating him, his mother pitying him, and 

  his ex-wife’s horror of him (it wasn’t really horror, just her first time, he 

  kinda blew that out of proportion in his mind at first).  Then a kind and 

  powerful voice speaks to him excitedly about arcane and profound 

  truths….

• Ezmerelda dreams of the night she lost her leg, only this time it is a 

  shadowy green dragon biting it off, not a werewolf….  Then she thinks 

  she awakens covered in scales, but it is just dream bleedover…. 

  Right?

• After describing the old recurring dream, then transitioning to the new 

  dream sequence for each PC, they woke up and I had the players roll 

  Save Vs. Magic.  Failure prevented taking any action within the 

  dream.

• Tim failed his Save.

• Shelby failed her Save.

• Gugula succeeded her Save.  She looks to Elise, the most 

  sympathetic seeming guest at this horrific wedding, and says 

  “What should I do?”  Elise smiles and says “Follow your heart!”  

  Gugula looks back to Lich Groom and swings hard to punch him in 

  the jaw.  He laughs and disappears, reappearing on the balcony 

  above. He tells her he will see her at the honeymoon.

• Fecus failed his Save.

• Although not able to take action in their dreams Tim, Fecus, and 

  Shelby had some opinions on what the messages were in the 

  dreams (Tiamat speaking and the symbolism) and Fecus and Shelby 

  were specifically concerned the dreams were an attack or invasion of 

  some kind.

• On to breakfast with Delimira, she complains of poor sleep, too.

• Rams walk over to Cascana Sanitarium with Delimira and find her 

  niece, Elyra, having her own breakfast in the garden.

• The reunion is brief, as Nurse Virell approaches Team Rams and tells 

  them that Elyra is unaware her baby’s daddy has been murdered.  

  She asks them to take Delimira away.  Sensing something weird 

  about the situation, Shelby has a whole inner dialogue going with 

  herself wondering if she should use Command on Elyra to induce 

  “miscarriage”. Tim ends up coaxing Delimira away and Team Rams 

  leave Cascana Sanitarium.

• Elise accompanies Delimira back to Riverview Rest Inn while the rest 

  of Team Rams make an all day visit to Library Pharmacologae, where 

  they purchase new spells, scrolls, and potions.  Their host while 

  visiting is Librarian Apprentice Rennas Quillhand.  Fecus is able to sell 

  some gems and jewelry (10,000 GP value) while the magic users 

  study and copy spells.