Session 12: Eldwythe and the Candy Cottage

Session 12 is the twelfth recorded session of the campaign. On watch, Hugo called the Black Mask through his Onyx Ring of Barbed Hooks and asked to become its eternal champion ^[16]; the devil refused, but offered Hugo what he wanted if he could get one of his allies to sign over their soul, and named Vasquez ^[18]. In Eldwythe the party saved the confectioner Edith Applegarth from a fire at her shop ^[56][222] and traced a cinnamon roll to the baker Phil Flowerforge, who confessed to raising a young dragon, Briochebane, from a stolen egg ^[77]. Following a candy trail east, they entered the Candy Cottage, killed an animated rug and three candy goblins, and Vasquez was pushed into a taffy puller and turned into taffy ^[10]. The session ended at the start of a floured peppermint hallway ^[23].

Session 12: Eldwythe and the Candy Cottage

Metadata

• In-game date: one day: the rest of the night’s watches, the walk to Eldwythe, about half a day ^[11], and on into the woods east of town.
• Locations visited: the forest clearing campsite (watches); an apple orchard by the road; Eldwythe; Edith’s Confectionery (on fire); Phil’s Bakery; the candy trail in the woods east of town; the Candy Cottage (foyer, sitting room, playroom, taffy room and the start of a peppermint hallway).
• Major NPCs present: the Black Mask (through Hugo’s ring); a boy who tried to rob the camp; the orchard family, Thomas Feld, his wife Mara and their daughter Lysa; Edith Applegarth; Phil Flowerforge; an animated rug; three candy goblins.
• Factions involved: The Ascendancy (named by Hugo to the Black Mask); Aurelia (background).
• Sessions referenced (callbacks): s4 (the Black Mask’s pact), s7 to s9 (Maelis Dirn, the Wraith, the succubus), s10 (Mira Hale), s11 (the handcart family, the owlbears).

Recap heard at start of session

The DM’s d6 first fell to Caelumn’s player, who passed because he was still logging in, so Hugo’s player Dylan recapped session 11, for the third week running by his count ^[12]. He covered the failed theft at the first potion shop, Ruin’s paralysing potion, the two potions bought and the black potion, the family with the broken cart and their warnings, the owlbear fight, his rescue of Caelumn and the watch order ^[13]. The DM corrected one point: the party had not camped by berry bushes, having looked and found none ^[14]. He also ruled that no level had been gained while he was away ^[15].

Executive Summary

A negotiation, a rescue and a dungeon. On watch, Hugo called the Black Mask through his pact ring and offered himself as its eternal champion in return for its help against The Ascendancy ^[16]. The devil refused, since souls come only by willing contract ^[17], but promised Hugo what he asked if he could bring one of his allies to sign over their soul, and named Vasquez, who “has unlocked something that should probably have been locked away” ^[18]. On the road the party met the orchard family of Thomas Feld, who had seen a dragon fly north-east ^[19]. In Eldwythe they saved Edith Applegarth from a fire at her confectionery ^[20]; a cinnamon roll behind the shop led them to Phil Flowerforge, who confessed that he had raised a young dragon, Briochebane, from an egg he escaped with on his last heist as a brigand, feared it had started the fire, and offered 100 gold for its return ^[21]. A candy trail east of town led to the Candy Cottage, a conjured house of sweets ^[22]. Inside they killed an animated rug that attacked when Terry did not wipe his feet ^[8], then three candy goblins, one of which pushed Vasquez into a taffy puller and turned him into taffy ^[10]. The session ended at the start of a floured peppermint hallway ^[23].

Narrative

The session opened on the night’s watches ^[24]. Caelumn kept his bonfire going and met a squirrel that sniffed the meat he threw it and ran ^[25]; under the stars for the first time in a while, he felt a sense of normal life he had almost forgotten ^[26].

On the second watch Hugo tapped his Onyx Ring of Barbed Hooks and called the Black Mask ^[27]. The wind stopped as if time had frozen, and the devil appeared not as the dwarf of last time but as a tiefling with green horns, still masked ^[28]. Hugo reminded it of what it had watched through the ring, the Wraith’s threats, his fight with Maelis Dirn and her titan, and the attack on his allies under the succubus’s control, and proposed a new contract: when the mission ends or he dies, he becomes the Mask’s eternal champion, to be brought back whenever he falls, if the Mask will help him turn the Wraith to his side so that together they can offer it the souls of every member of The Ascendancy ^[29]. Asked whether he had rehearsed, Hugo said he had only been thinking about it ^[30]. The Mask refused: souls come through contracts, “There’s rules. Those pesky rules.” ^[31], and a soul signed away under a knife does not count ^[32]. What the Ascendancy did to Hugo is still in his brain, the devil said; to break their mind control he would have to break into the Ascendancy’s secret headquarters and make its lead doctor explain it ^[33]. Why trade one puppet master for another, it asked, and Hugo answered that the Mask would end up his master anyway, so he might as well join the winning side ^[34]. The Mask saw no downside for itself in the present deal ^[35], but it made an offer: if Hugo can get one of his allies in this party to sign over their soul, the Mask will give Hugo what he proposed, for both of them ^[18]. It had its eye on Vasquez, who “has unlocked something that should probably have been locked away” ^[3]. It would not say what ^[36], but told Hugo not to worry about the demon: “Once he’s dead, the demon has no hold of him.” ^[37]. Then it vanished in a cloud of smoke ^[38].

On Ruin’s watch a small boy crept up to rummage in Terry’s shell, and Ruin shouted him off into the brush ^[39]. On the last watch Terry, tidying the things he keeps in his shell, heard a faint woman’s voice on the wind; he refused to be drawn, and let the others sleep ^[40].

After about two hours on the road they passed an orchard of young apple trees ^[41]. Ruin jumped the fence and took three apples while a man on a ladder picked fruit, a woman sorted it and a girl of about eight, Lysa, called out that he looked as if he had come from “that dark place” ^[42]. Asked whether she was the girl from the road, the DM said “No, different girl.” ^[43]. The man wanted the stolen apples paid for, Terry argued that taking them was tree surgery, and Caelumn paid five copper ^[44], later a silver coin for a whole sack ^[45][46]. The orchard keeper named himself in the middle of a story about a giant shadow that blotted out the moon on his way back from the outhouse: “as my name is Thomas Feld I did see a dragon” ^[47]. He is Thomas Feld, and his wife is Mara ^[48]. The dragon flew north-east, roughly towards Palathorn ^[49][50]. He praised the cinnamon buns at Phil Flowerforge’s new bakery and the sweets of an old woman, Edith, in business for 50 or 60 years ^[51], and asked the party to bring him back a bag of sweets from Edith Applegarth, recommending her caramel ^[52]. Eldwythe, he said, is a lovely town that stays out of politics and that no one has claimed ^[53]. He had seen no Aurelian soldiers with a prison carriage; prisoners from Umbrafall would most likely go to Aurelia by ship along a well-used route ^[54].

About an hour and a half later they reached Eldwythe: timber houses with steep mossy roofs, axes thudding beyond the tree line, the smell of pine and warm bread, and farmhands who nodded but did not stare ^[55][56]. At the tree line, black smoke poured from a squat log building, the air smelled of burnt sugar, and someone inside screamed for help ^[56]. Caelumn’s Control Flames put out only a little of the fire before it took hold again ^[57]; he opened the door, taking 5 fire damage after a good Dexterity save, and breathed cold through it with Dragon’s Breath, beating back some of the flames ^[58]. Inside, lollipops had melted into grotesque faces and an old woman cowered behind the counter, too frightened to move ^[59]. Hugo dashed in and carried her out ^[60]. Patting the fire out by hand was plainly a bad idea ^[61], so Vasquez got the watching townsfolk into a bucket line, and after about five minutes the fire was out ^[62]; Ruin snuffed the last flame with Prestidigitation ^[63].

The confectioner was Edith Applegarth, who could not think who would do such a rotten thing ^[64]. Caelumn’s search of Edith’s Confectionery turned up a scorched painting of a young Edith with a young boy, and a half-eaten, slightly charred cinnamon roll in the grass behind the shop ^[65]. The boy was her brother: “He disappeared into the woods and never came home.” ^[66]. A History check placed the roll as one of Phil’s ^[67]. Edith wondered whether Phil wanted to be the town’s only seller of sweets ^[68], offered ten gold each and a batch of their favourite desserts if they found who set the fire ^[69], and gave his full name, Phil Flowerforge ^[70].

Phil’s Bakery, deeper in town, is shaped like a giant loaf ^[71][72]. Phil, a dwarf with bushy eyebrows and a clean-shaven face, came out of the kitchen with a tray of cinnamon rolls ^[73]. He admitted the roll was his, marked with a trade secret, said he sold 60 to 80 a day, and claimed to know nothing about the fire ^[74][75]. Caelumn’s Insight, rolled with advantage, came up 20 and caught him holding something back, and Caelumn bared the dragon scales on his throat as he pressed him ^[76]. Phil confessed: a brigand once, he had barely escaped his last heist, carrying a dragon egg; the coin funded the bakery, his pastries are toasted with dragon fire, and he has been raising the hatchling, Briochebane, in secret for months ^[77]. As Brioche has grown he has been harder to keep indoors; Phil fears he started the fire, promised to pay for the rebuilding anonymously if so, and said the dragon had not come home in a couple of days ^[77]. He offered 100 gold in all, 20 each, for Brioche’s return, and said he likes to frolic and hunt in the woods east of town ^[78]. Ruin threatened to report Phil to the authorities to push the price up, and Caelumn refused to be part of it ^[79]. Phil described Brioche’s scales as reddish ^[80], handed over a sack of warm cinnamon rolls, Brioche’s favourite, to coax him home, and added that, like any good bread, he is “crusty on the outside but soft on the inside” ^[81]. When the others had gone, Ruin stayed behind and took his 20 gold share up front, with a dozen cinnamon rolls ^[82].

Heading east, Hugo, who had walked into the bakery wearing a dragon skull, hoped Phil had not noticed ^[83]. Did they have to kill this dragon? Not necessarily, Hugo argued: the egg had absorbed the essence the first dragon left in its treasure, not the dragon itself, so they might need the hoard of the mother whose egg Phil stole ^[84]. The DM confirmed that in the first dragon’s lair the egg had begun to hum within about 20 feet of the treasure ^[85].

In the dense forest beyond Eldwythe they found a trail of colourful candies ^[86]. An hour along it stood the Candy Cottage: lollipops, taffies and truffles on its walls, sugar-glass windows, a porch of pink wafers, a liquorice-thatched roof, a squat peppermint tower at the back, and a small barn and an outhouse of chocolate planks ^[87]. Ruin’s Detect Magic showed the whole place was conjuration magic ^[88]; he ate a sweet from the trail, and ten minutes later it had been replaced ^[89]. On the porch, beside a candy rocking chair, a fruit-leather doormat asked visitors to wipe their feet ^[90]. Terry’s owl, flying past a side window, counted three goblin-like creatures inside ^[91], and Terry, taking the lead, cast Blade Ward and opened the unlocked chocolate door ^[92].

The foyer held coats and boots in different sizes, with a candy sitting room to the east and a playroom to the west, and Terry found no traps ^[93]. Then the mat beneath him shouted “GUESTS MUST WIPE FEET!” and flew at his face ^[94][95]. It wrapped round him, but his Shield turned the blow ^[96], and Ruin’s Eldritch Blast, Vasquez’s gunblade and Hugo’s hand axe killed it in one round, to the disappointment of Terry, who had hoped to tame a flying carpet ^[97]. The DM explained that it had only come alive because Terry did not wipe his feet ^[98], so they all wiped their feet on the dead rug and left their shoes on the rack ^[99]. In the sitting room, among candy furniture and sugar doilies, a candy kettle whistled over the fire ^[100]. Terry made tea, took it black and found it tasted a little of dirt, though the candy cup sweetened it; Caelumn accepted a cup out of politeness ^[101]. In the playroom, among toys and a giant toppled cradle, a rocking horse cried “hot dog hot dog hot dog” whenever Terry rocked it ^[102], and through the owl’s eyes Terry saw the goblins look up, then go back to work ^[103].

Terry opened their door with “hello motherfuckers” ^[104], and the three goblins, furry humanoids with long pointed ears and sharp teeth dressed in red stripes, snatched up spiked candy clubs ^[105][106]. One hauled Vasquez into the next room, which held a taffy puller, and shut the door ^[107]; Hugo dropped another with a reckless hand-axe throw ^[108]; and the third grappled Vasquez and pushed him in. His limbs were magically stretched, he failed his Strength save, and he was flung out onto the floor with 13 bludgeoning damage ^[109], turned to taffy, armour and all ^[110][111]. Vasquez answered with an Action Surge critical hit for 36 that flattened the goblin that had pushed him ^[112], and once Terry, Caelumn and Ruin had worn the last one down, he finished it with his gunblade’s lightning charge ^[113].

With the fight over, Vasquez, still the same size but soft and slightly elastic, pointed at the puller and invited the others to take a ride on it ^[114]. Hugo searched for a way to undo it and found nothing, only a large blob of unstretched taffy by the west window and three buckets holding about 100 wrapped pieces of saltwater taffy each ^[115]. Ruin drew the obvious conclusion about where the taffy came from ^[116], and Hugo suggested it might be worth offering to something deeper in the house ^[117][118]. The goblins carried hide armour and light hammers for breaking candy ^[119]. Vasquez, down to 8 hit points, refused a rest, and Ruin healed him for 6 ^[120][121]. The next door opened onto a long hallway tiled in peppermint and sprinkled with flour, and the session ended there ^[23].

Dialogue Highlights

1. Hugo, proposing a new contract to the Black Mask: “Once this mission ends, or if I am to die, I am to become your champion. Eternal champion.” ^[29]
2. The Black Mask, refusing: “There’s rules. Those pesky rules.” ^[31]
3. The Black Mask, on forced contracts: “the person signing over their souls needs to actually want to sign over their souls” ^[32]
4. The Black Mask, puzzled by Hugo: “Certainly the devil you know must be better than the devil you don’t, no?” ^[122]
5. Hugo, in reply: “So I figured I might as well join the winning side.” ^[123]
6. The Black Mask, on the current deal: “so be a good dog and go fetch some of them eggs” ^[124]
7. The Black Mask, on Vasquez: “I do have my eye on the one they call Vasquez. He has unlocked something that should probably have been locked away. But now that it’s free, it’s very enticing.” ^[3]
8. The Black Mask, on the demon in Vasquez: “Once he’s dead, the demon has no hold of him.” ^[37]
9. Lysa, spotting Ruin: “Hey! You look like you came from that dark place!” ^[125]
10. Thomas Feld, on his dragon: “as my name is Thomas Feld I did see a dragon” ^[47]
11. Edith Applegarth, on the painting: “That’s my brother. He disappeared into the woods and never came home.” ^[66]
12. Phil Flowerforge, confessing: “And on my last heist, I nearly died. But I managed to escape with a dragon egg.” ^[77]
13. Phil, parting advice on Brioche: “he’s just like any good bread he’s crusty on the outside but soft on the inside.” ^[126]
14. The doormat, as Terry stepped in: “GUESTS MUST WIPE FEET!” ^[94]
15. Vasquez, after the taffy puller: “Am I still the same dimensions or am I flat?” ^[127]
16. Vasquez, pointing at the puller: “Take a ride on that and you’ll experience exactly what I just went through” ^[128]

NPCs

1. Black Mask (returning, in-fiction): the devil of Hugo’s pact (s4), now a tiefling with green horns, still masked ^[28]. It refused Hugo’s champion contract ^[17], told him how the Ascendancy’s mind control might be broken ^[129], offered him what he wanted for one ally’s soul and named Vasquez ^[18], and would not explain what Vasquez had unlocked ^[130]. Status: alive. New this session: no (new form).
2. Thomas Feld (named, in-fiction): the orchard keeper on the road to Eldwythe, who named himself in his dragon story ^[47]; he saw a dragon fly north-east towards Palathorn ^[49][50] and asked the party for a bag of Edith’s sweets ^[131]. Not the handcart father of session 11 ^[43]. Status: alive. New this session: yes.
3. Mara (named, in-fiction): Thomas Feld’s wife, sorting apples ^[125][48]; she bought six of Phil’s cinnamon buns that day ^[75]. Status: alive. New this session: yes.
4. Lysa (named, in-fiction): the Felds’ daughter, about eight, who called out to Ruin from the fence ^[125]. Status: alive. New this session: yes.
5. The thief boy (unnamed): crept up to the camp at night and rummaged in Terry’s shell until Ruin shouted him off ^[39]. Status: alive. New this session: yes.
6. Edith Applegarth (named, in-fiction): Eldwythe’s confectioner, in business for 50 or 60 years ^[132], carried out of the fire by Hugo ^[60]. Her brother disappeared into the woods and never came home ^[66]. She offered ten gold each and desserts for the arsonist ^[69]. Status: alive. New this session: yes.
7. Edith’s brother (unnamed, off-screen): the young boy in her scorched painting ^[133]. Status: unknown. New this session: yes (referenced).
8. Phil Flowerforge (named, in-fiction): the dwarf baker, named by Edith ^[70], a former brigand who escaped his last heist with a dragon egg and raised the hatchling in secret ^[77]. He offered 100 gold in all for Brioche’s return ^[78] and paid Ruin his 20 up front ^[82]. Status: alive. New this session: yes.
9. Briochebane (named, off-screen): Phil’s young dragon, with reddish scales ^[80], fond of cinnamon rolls and of frolicking and hunting in the woods east of town; he has not been home for a couple of days and may have started the fire ^[21][134]. Status: at large. New this session: yes.
10. The animated rug (unnamed, in-fiction): the Candy Cottage’s fruit-leather doormat, which attacked when Terry did not wipe his feet ^[94][98]. Status: dead ^[135]. New this session: yes.
11. Three candy goblins (unnamed, new creature type): furry humanoids with long pointed ears and sharp teeth, dressed in red stripes, working the taffy in the Candy Cottage ^[106]; one grappled Vasquez into the taffy puller ^[136]. Status: all dead ^{[137][138][139]}. New this session: yes.

Locations

1. Forest clearing campsite (s11): the night’s watches ^[140], about half a day from Eldwythe ^[11].
2. The Felds’ orchard (unnamed, first appears ^[41]): young apple trees in neat rows behind a low wooden fence, about two hours from the camp and an hour and a half from Eldwythe ^[41][55]. New this session: yes.
3. Eldwythe: timber houses with steep mossy roofs, axes beyond the tree line, the smell of pine and warm bread; life there is practical and uncomplicated ^[56]. A lovely town that no one has claimed, staying out of the politics of Umbrafall, Arcanthys and Aurelia ^[53]. New this session: first visit.
4. Edith’s Confectionery: a squat log building at the edge of the woods, half burned; melted lollipops inside, a scorched painting, and a cinnamon roll in the grass behind ^[56][59][65]. New this session: yes.
5. Phil’s Bakery: further into town, shaped like a giant loaf, with a brass bell over the door and shelves of flour-dusted loaves and golden pastries ^[71][72][73]. New this session: yes.
6. The candy trail (unnamed, first appears ^[86]): colourful candies through the dense forest east of Eldwythe, an hour’s walk to the cottage ^[86][141]. New this session: yes.
7. Candy Cottage: a conjured house of confectionery ^[87][142] whose eaten food is replaced within ten minutes ^[143]. Rooms seen: the foyer ^[93], the sitting room ^[100], the playroom ^[144], the taffy room ^[145][146] and a floured peppermint hallway ^[23]. New this session: yes.
8. Palathorn (referenced): the direction of Thomas Feld’s dragon ^[50].

Items & Loot

1. A sack of warm cinnamon rolls (party): Phil’s bait for Brioche ^[134].
2. 20 gold and a dozen cinnamon rolls (Ruin): his share of Phil’s reward, paid up front ^[82]; he had eaten 12 cinnamon rolls by the time they reached the cottage ^[147].
3. A sack of apples (party): one silver to Thomas Feld ^[45][46], thrown to Ruin ^[148].
4. Three stolen apples (Ruin): paid for with five copper ^[149][150].
5. Candy goblin gear: hide armour and three light hammers on each body; not taken ^[151].
6. Three buckets of saltwater taffy (Candy Cottage): about 100 wrapped pieces each, left where they were ^[146].
7. Onyx Ring of Barbed Hooks (Hugo): used to call the Black Mask ^[27].
8. Aurelian Plate Armour (Vasquez): his new plate gives him more AC than Caelumn ^[152], and it was turned to taffy with him ^[111].
9. Hugo’s dragon skull: worn into the bakery ^[83].

Combat Encounters

• The burning confectionery ^[153]
  • Trigger: a fire at Edith’s shop, with Edith inside ^[56]; the DM ran it in initiative ^[154].
  • Enemies: none; the fire itself.
  • Resources spent: Caelumn: Control Flames, 5 fire damage opening the door, and Dragon’s Breath as cold ^[155]. Hugo: a dash in to carry Edith out ^[60]. Vasquez: Intimidation to start a bucket line ^[62]. Ruin: Prestidigitation on the last flame ^[63].
  • Resolution: Edith saved and the fire out after about five minutes ^[156].
• The animated rug ^[157]
  • Trigger: Terry stepped into the foyer without wiping his feet ^[94][98].
  • Enemy: one animated fruit-leather rug that tried to wrap itself round Terry’s face ^[95].
  • Party state at start: rested, with Terry concentrating on Blade Ward ^[158].
  • Notable rolls: the rug’s 22 fell to 21 with Blade Ward and was stopped by Shield ^[159].
  • Resources spent: Terry: Shield ^[160]. Ruin: Eldritch Blast ^[161]. Vasquez: a gunblade cut for 14 ^[162]. Hugo: a hand axe for 7 ^[163].
  • Resolution: the rug died in the first round ^[135].
• Three candy goblins ^[9]
  • Trigger: Terry opened the taffy-room door with “hello motherfuckers” ^[164].
  • Enemies: three candy goblins with spiked candy clubs and a trait for grappling ^{[165][106][166]}.
  • Party state at start: unhurt after the rug, Terry low on spell slots ^[167].
  • Notable rolls: Caelumn’s Burning Hands, DC 15, saved against by two of three ^[168]; a goblin’s 19 against Vasquez’s AC 18 ^[169]; Vasquez failed the Strength save in the taffy puller ^[170] but made the Dexterity save after it ^[171]; his critical hit did 36 ^[172].
  • Resources spent: Terry: the hand crossbow with True Strike and two Shields, the second on his last spell slot ^{[173][174][175][167]}. Caelumn: Innate Sorcery and Burning Hands, then Fire Bolt ^[176][177]. Ruin: Sacred Flame and Fire Bolt ^[178][179]. Hugo: a reckless thrown hand axe ^[108]. Vasquez: his gunblade’s primed charge twice and Action Surge ^{[180][181][182]}.
  • Downs / damage: no one down; Vasquez took 7 and 13 bludgeoning and ended on 8 hit points ^{[183][184][120]}.
  • Resolution: all three goblins dead, one to Hugo and two to Vasquez ^{[137][138][139]}; Vasquez turned to taffy ^[185].

Clues & Foreshadowing

1. The Black Mask’s forms (DM-confirmed): this time a tiefling with green horns, not the dwarf of session 4 ^[28].
2. The Mask and Vasquez’s demon (DM-confirmed): the Mask knows what Vasquez has unlocked and finds it “very enticing” ^[3]. When Hugo asked “It’s not some local rival of you”, it answered “No. No, no, no, no, no.” and would not explain ^[36]. Of the demon it said: “Once he’s dead, the demon has no hold of him.” ^[37]. The Mask wants Vasquez’s soul and will give Hugo his deal for it ^[18].
3. The Ascendancy’s mind control (DM-confirmed): still in Hugo’s brain; breaking it would mean breaking into the Ascendancy’s secret headquarters and getting its lead doctor to explain how it works ^[33].
4. The Ascendancy named: Hugo named the faction to the Mask on his own watch, while the rest of the party slept ^[186][29], so the other characters do not know the name.
5. Phil’s egg (NPC statement): taken on his last heist ^[77]; where it came from, and what became of its mother, is unknown.
6. The egg and the hoard (DM-confirmed): the egg hummed within about 20 feet of the first dragon’s treasure ^[85], and Hugo reasons that they may need the hoard of Brioche’s mother rather than Brioche himself ^[187].
7. Edith’s lost brother (NPC statement): he disappeared into the woods ^[66], and the Candy Cottage stands in the woods east of town ^[188].
8. The Candy Cottage’s magic (DM-confirmed): conjuration ^[142], with eaten food replaced in ten minutes ^[143]; Terry likened it to Mirage Arcane, a seventh-level spell ^[189].
9. Where the taffy comes from (player deduction): an unstretched blob and three buckets of wrapped taffy sit beside the machine that turned Vasquez into taffy ^[146][116].
10. Thomas Feld’s dragon (NPC statement): a shadow that blotted out the moon, flying north-east towards Palathorn ^[19]; perhaps Brioche, perhaps something larger.
11. Aurelian prisoners by sea (NPC statement): prisoners from Umbrafall would most likely be shipped to Aurelia along a well-used route ^[190], a lead for Mira Hale.
12. The woman’s voice on the wind (DM narration, unexplained): Terry heard it on his watch ^[191].

Open Mysteries & Unanswered Questions

1. Will Hugo try to bring Vasquez into the Black Mask’s pact ^[192]?
2. What has Vasquez “unlocked” that the Mask finds so enticing ^[3]?
3. Where did Phil’s egg come from, and is Briochebane’s mother still alive ^[77]?
4. Is the dragon Thomas Feld saw Briochebane, or something larger ^[19]?
5. Did Briochebane start the fire at Edith’s ^[77]?
6. What happened to Edith’s brother ^[66]?
7. Who owns the Candy Cottage? The goblins are only workers ^[146][151].
8. Can Vasquez’s taffy form be undone ^[193]?
9. Whose voice did Terry hear on the wind ^[194]?

Quests

1. [Status: new] Find who set the fire (Edith): ten gold each and a batch of desserts ^[69].
2. [Status: new] Briochebane’s return (Phil): 100 gold in all, 20 each, with Ruin’s share already paid ^[78][82].
3. [Status: new] Sweets for Thomas Feld: a bag of Edith’s sweets, if the party passes back that way ^[195].
4. [Status: active] The Candy Cottage: entered by following the candy trail ^[196].
5. [Status: active] The Egg Quest: Hugo reasons the hoard matters more than the dragon ^[187][197].
6. [Status: active] Hugo’s pact with the Black Mask: the old contract stands; the new offer needs an ally’s soul ^[198].
7. [Status: deferred] Risa’s Sister Conspiracy: Thomas Feld points to the sea route from Umbrafall to Aurelia ^[190].

Faction & Relationship Changes

• Hugo and the Black Mask: Hugo is in deeper and has said he will “see what I can do” about converting Vasquez ^[199].
• Vasquez: now the Mask’s chosen target, without knowing it ^[3].
• Ruin and the party: Ruin’s threat to report Phil and his private deal ^[200][201]; Caelumn refused to threaten anyone ^[202], and Vasquez offered Ruin his own share ^[203].
• Eldwythe: grateful, with townsfolk joining the bucket line ^[156] and Edith offering a reward ^[69].
• Thomas Feld: friendly, but told the party to watch their thieving friend ^[204].

Table Rulings

1. Opening a door is a free item interaction ^[205][206].
2. A burning door calls for a Dexterity save, half damage on a success ^[207].
3. Dragon’s Breath can be cast on yourself and breathed as cold ^[208].
4. The Candy Cottage’s animated objects come alive only when its house rules are broken ^[98].
5. Reckless Attack works with a thrown hand axe ^[209].
6. Half cover gives +2 AC ^[210].
7. Critical hits: rolling the dice twice or rolling once and doubling are the same to the DM ^[211].
8. Pity advantage: after a miss, the DM let Vasquez take advantage on a reroll ^[212].
9. Great Weapon Fighting (Vasquez): damage dice under 3 count as 3 ^[213].
10. No level for the DM’s absence at the end of session 11 ^[15].

Callbacks

• The Black Mask’s pact (s4): the same devil in a new form ^[28]; the old contract’s ban on interfering with Hugo’s team stands ^[29].
• Maelis Dirn, The Wraith and The Succubus (s7 to s9): Hugo cited all three to the Mask ^[29].
• The handcart family (s11): the DM confirmed Lysa was a different girl ^[43].
• The owlbears (s11): Hugo reminded Vasquez, who had missed the fight, “I saved all their fucking lives literally before we went to sleep” ^[214].
• Mira Hale (s10): Caelumn asked Thomas Feld about Aurelian soldiers with a prison carriage ^[54].
• The first dragon’s hoard (s3): the egg hummed near its treasure ^[85].

Meta notes

• Polar (Vasquez) was back after missing session 11 ^[215][216].
• Hugo’s player stepped away for a few minutes as the party set off; the DM moved Hugo along with the others ^[217][218].
• A 15-minute break came after Edith’s fire ^[219].
• The DM could not run the next session on the usual date, so it was set for the 14th ^[220].

Next Steps

• Follow the floured peppermint hallway deeper into the Candy Cottage ^[23].
• Find Briochebane and bring him back to Phil for the reward ^[78].
• Find a way to undo Vasquez’s taffy form ^[221].
• Learn what became of Edith’s brother ^[66].
• Hugo: decide whether to try to bring Vasquez into the Mask’s pact ^[199].
• Afterwards, the sea route to Aurelia and Mira Hale ^[190].

References

1. ^ Session 12, line 38-68: Hugo's opening recap of session 11; the DM's corrections.
2. ^ Session 12, line 192-237: Hugo speaks to the Black Mask via the ring; champion-eternal proposal refused.
3. ^ Session 12, line 223: The Black Mask on Vasquez ("He has unlocked something that should probably have been locked away").
4. ^ Session 12, line 339-460: The orchard by the road: Lysa, Thomas Feld and his dragon sighting.
5. ^ Session 12, line 501-622: Fire saved, Edith Applegarth named, conversation about her missing brother.
6. ^ Session 12, line 707-771: Phil Flowerforge confesses to the dragon; Briochebane named; Ruin's side deal.
7. ^ Session 12, line 832-866: Candy Cottage description and entry.
8. ^ Session 12, line 961-1049: Animate rug ambush ("GUESTS MUST WIPE FEET!").
9. ^ Session 12, line 1160-1456: Candy goblins fight.
10. ^ Session 12, line 1317-1325: Vasquez pushed into the taffy puller, transformed.
11. ^ Session 12, line 324-325: Inline citation.
12. ^ Session 12, line 38-42: Inline citation.
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