July 21, 2025 • 26 mins
Doroth: Tale of the Manticore is a hybrid solo-actualplay D&D game and full production audiodrama. I use Dungeons & Dragons B/X (OSR). This is a dark fantasy tale made for a mature audience.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hello, This is Nate from Family Tabletop and you are
listening to Tale of the Manticor.
Speaker 2 (00:09):
The following podcast is intended for a mature audience. Listener
discretion is advised. Welcome back to Tale of the Manticor
(00:31):
Season three. Like the creature from which it takes its name,
Tale of the Manticor is a mashup, a cross breeding
between two different species of storytelling. Here you will find
the unpredictability of old school paper and dice games with
the story craft of a dark fantasy novel. No character
is sacred, and none will be spared if the dice
(00:52):
decide their fate is at hand. According to Lare, the
Tale of a Manticore is barbed with cruel iron spike.
There will be much pain in the days ahead. Last
(01:13):
time on Tale of the Manticor, the previous chapter picks
up in the middle of the conversation with the elves
Colin and Zotope, who give the party directions to derowth
Achillea now believes this to be the most likely place
to find Odok Zagog. It is a little closer and
a little further west than Elder Valken had told them
to expect, but that could easily be chalked up to
(01:35):
an imperfect memory. She reasons. Colin and Zotope also provide
directions to a nearby lake and some provisions before taking
their leave. The lake turns out to be a place
of picturesque natural beauty. Here Kord undergoes another set of
changes as he slowly evolves into his potential. The companions
leave the next morning and for two days journey to
(01:58):
the northwest. At one point, the party crests arise and
stops to admire a mountain range in the distance. From here,
it is only another dozen miles to their destination, and
on the morning of the next day to discover something.
Achillea tenyr, Cord, and Fairwind have yet to see what
it is, but de Renni in the lead can be
heard cursing and drawing his sword. Chapter twenty nine, Part one,
(02:29):
Day twenty nine, late morning mythic event meaning transform wounds.
Party status Achillea nine out of nine hit points, Cord
eighteen of eighteen, de Renni twelve of twelve, ten Tier
(02:51):
fifteen of fifteen, fair Wind eighteen of eighteen. Supplies. The
companions have eight portions of food remaining. Spells available achillia
can cast shrink times jew and glitter dust cord can
cast entangle and slow poison. When the others cleared the
(03:17):
top of the embankment, they saw what had alarmed de Rennie.
The skeleton, human by the looks of it, impaled on
a stake. The steak itself was a roughly denuded sapling.
It ran up through the rib cage, with its sharpened
tip protruding from a mouth pushed wide open by its girth.
As for Dorenni, he was wheeling about, looking in all
(03:37):
directions for potential threats, his sword raised and ready. Not
fifty paces from the first staked skeleton was another. This
one still had long, filthy hair clinging to the top
of its skull. A third impelled corpse could be seen
at roughly the same distance in the other direction.
Speaker 1 (03:54):
What kind of people are these?
Speaker 2 (03:56):
Drothi as ten Tire in horror. He was staring up
at the tip of one of the steaks. It was
stained a dark color. What kind?
Speaker 3 (04:04):
Indeed?
Speaker 2 (04:05):
Said Ferwind He noticed with a revulsion that many of
the bones had rough scoring on them, implying they'd be
not upon these marks. They don't look like they were
made by weapons.
Speaker 3 (04:16):
Though I am no expert in the matter.
Speaker 2 (04:18):
By now, dur Any was satisfied that there was no
immediate threats nearby, and he came over to scrutinize the marks.
Speaker 4 (04:25):
Not by weapons, no, but these do not look like
they were made by wolves either, at least not after
these steaks were planted. Look, the marks go all the
way to the top of the skull.
Speaker 2 (04:40):
It was true, Something large and sharp must have scraped
across them to leave marks.
Speaker 4 (04:44):
So deep, Achillie, are you sure you want to go on?
Speaker 2 (04:48):
The half elf pressed her lips into a thin line
and nodded sharply. These gruesome scarecrows were not what she
had hoped to find here, but she was not about
to be frightened off so easily.
Speaker 1 (04:59):
They're a warning to intruders, that's for certain, said Tintyre soberly.
Didn't Colin say that Dorothy were an unfriendly.
Speaker 4 (05:06):
People, He said they were unpredictable. De Rennie corrected, and
that he had not personally met any of them. We
shall move ahead, but everyone keep a sharp eye out
for trouble.
Speaker 2 (05:19):
With that, he sheathed his sword and readied his bow.
Come on, The quintet moved beyond the border suggested by
the grim sentries and continued in their original direction. They
did not keep their usual single file order, however, but
found out into two ranks, so that De Renni, Tintyr,
and Court were in the lead, and Achilia and fair
(05:39):
Wind walked behind them. The land declined after a few
minutes while the companions passed a number of ancient sentinel
oaks and a few slouching sycamores. Then it rose up
over a knuckled hump. When they reached the top, they
were looking down upon De Roth. The small settlement was
built into a basin that fell away from the forest
on one and rose up into a rock wall on
(06:02):
the other. Four or five cave openings were visible on
the side of that rock wall, all of which had
signs of architectural modification. In the basin with the shattered
remains of six structures. They had once been log houses,
sturdily built too by appearances, but the scene in general
looked as though a cyclone had touched down here, for
(06:22):
every building lay in shambles, with timbers shattered and roofs
torn off. Broken trees lay helter skelter on the ground.
In the center was the only thing that did not
appear damaged a stone. Well more of the staked skeletons
were present here, too, many more. They ringed the place,
leaning at angles and pointing every which way. Taken all
(06:45):
at once, it was an awesome scene to behold, one
of immense wreckage and desolation. Chapter twenty nine. Seven years ago.
Rector Bayum banged his staff on the ground to get
(07:07):
his curate's attention. When the younger man turned around, he.
Speaker 5 (07:10):
Said, see to it that the children are gathered for
noontime prayers, and have yu laan pen.
Speaker 2 (07:14):
The animals director surveyed the community below from where he
stood in the cave mouth. They had done well here.
It was a hard life to have chosen, but a
good one. Yes, there was more work to be done,
that was certain, But in a Hayes name they had
done well. While they had no more than a handful
of buildings and their members numbered, But sixty de Roth
(07:35):
was a village.
Speaker 5 (07:37):
Where there is faith, there is purpose.
Speaker 2 (07:39):
He muttered to himself. The latest expedition would return to
day a hay willing, and when they did, another section
of their ever growing map would be filled in. And
there was always the chance. But no, it was better
not to hope for too much. Success would come in time.
Scripture and exploration would be their compass and their vessel.
(08:00):
One day they would find it. They needed only be
patient and diligent with their efforts. They needed only to
have faith, and he did. In Abundance, Chapter twenty nine,
Part three, Day twenty eight, late morning, mythic event meaning
(08:25):
transform wounds party status. The party's status is unchanged. What
in the name of Sadal happened here? Breathed Farewyin. The
companions were arranged in a line along the rim of
the natural bowl that contained what was once presumably the
village of Duroth. Their eyes moved from the shattered log buildings,
(08:47):
to the caves with their broken timber platforms and empty
door frames, and then to the numerous staked skeletons sticking
it from the ground like so many morbid trees. Listen, Achillee,
I've been thinking. It is well known.
Speaker 3 (09:03):
That odok Zygog is reckless.
Speaker 2 (09:06):
Could it be that we have.
Speaker 3 (09:08):
Come to the wrong place?
Speaker 2 (09:10):
A Chillia didn't want that to be true.
Speaker 6 (09:13):
I don't know, but with humans being so uncommon, I mean,
this place being so close to our destination, it can't
be a coincidence?
Speaker 7 (09:24):
Can it?
Speaker 3 (09:25):
Have you seen any of the places in your sketchbook
over the last few days?
Speaker 2 (09:30):
Achillia shook her head. No, of course she hadn't, Otherwise
she would have said something, I think it's worth a
closer look.
Speaker 6 (09:38):
I mean, it doesn't appear that anyone still lives here.
Speaker 3 (09:41):
If it were for all those skeletons, I would agree,
said Fairwind, what do you think?
Speaker 2 (09:46):
Cord the wooden construct rocked from side to side in
his way of saying, I don't know.
Speaker 3 (09:54):
Perhaps you should ask de Renni and Tantya what they think.
Speaker 2 (09:58):
The half elf did, and both brothers replied that a
cautious investigation was warranted. Tender was clearly curious to see more.
He had always been fascinated by the race of men,
and still was despite the bad experience as they had
shared in the Kymore Ruins and the presence of the
skeletons here. Derenni was more practical.
Speaker 4 (10:17):
Fair Wind is in dire need of equipment, and there
might be something he could make use of here. It
may be worth a look.
Speaker 2 (10:25):
With that, the companions left the ridge and began their
descent into the broken reveins of Duroth. Chapter twenty nine,
Part four. Rector Biam held the first scroll of Galindoo
(10:49):
in his hand and gazed down upon the great map
lost in concentration. This map incomplete, though it was represented
all that his people had accomplished over the life just
six years. The scroll had led them to this part
of Marith after they'd deciphered as riddles, but without the
second scroll, the information was incomplete, and the location of
(11:10):
the Golden Path was still unknown. The rector wondered if
the second scroll really had been destroyed, as most followers
of Ahea believed, or if it had just been lost.
Should someone happen to find it, then there would be
reason to hurry. The search would become a race. But
if that had happened, he was confident he would know
(11:31):
they would have come into contact with other searchers. By now,
they had encountered hardships, sure, wild animals, illness, even marauding monsters,
but they had always been able to protect themselves. His
people had made stout buildings and sturdy doors. Their caves
were virtually impregnable, and of course, when this was not enough,
(11:51):
they could fight. A noise from the next room brought
him from.
Speaker 7 (11:58):
His musing doctor baiorected by him. It was the voice
of his number two, the Curate ams In. The younger
man burst into the cave room barefoot and half dressed.
His hair was disheveled, and there was blood on his fingers.
When his wide eyes found the rector, relief washed over him.
Speaker 5 (12:16):
Oh thank you, Hey, you're here.
Speaker 2 (12:18):
The Curate was clearly out of breath.
Speaker 5 (12:20):
What has happened to Amson? Speak man?
Speaker 2 (12:23):
It took a moment for the Curate to gather the
necessary wind to.
Speaker 7 (12:26):
Reply, it's Jesson.
Speaker 5 (12:29):
He's returned to him. The expedition is back.
Speaker 2 (12:31):
So soon queried by him, noticing the blood on Amson's hands,
he was already making ready to leave.
Speaker 1 (12:37):
It's only Jesson, and and he's hurt, badly hurt something.
I don't know what, but something attacked him.
Speaker 2 (12:45):
By him, snatched his holy symbol from the tabletop.
Speaker 5 (12:48):
Take me to him right away, Curate.
Speaker 2 (12:51):
Amsen led by him through a series of caverns on
the way to a larger space that was closer to
the entrance. Here slouched on a chair with the woman
to either side trying to hold him upright was Jesson
or what was left to him for the man's left
hand should have been. There was now a gory stump.
A great piece of his right shoulder was missing as well.
(13:12):
His chained shirt had been stripped off and blood stained
his undershirt down to the waist. When they had left
on the expedition, Jesson had been wearing a steel helm
and carrying a shield. Those were nowhere to be seen.
One of the two women by his side looked up
and said, he came in by the goat pen looking
like this, incoherent moderin about beIN sorry and trying not
(13:34):
to come home.
Speaker 4 (13:35):
We brought him straight here.
Speaker 2 (13:37):
You were right to do so, Orlean, said the rector,
gripping his simple tightly.
Speaker 5 (13:41):
Lift him upright, so I'm attend to him.
Speaker 2 (13:43):
With an effort, the two women hauled the injured man
into a fully upright position. It was no eiasy feet.
Jesson was a warrior, and his thickly muscled physique made
him heavy. It didn't help that Jesson's body had gone
completely slack by now. A pool of blood was spreading
under his chair. When Baum looked into the warrior's eyes,
(14:04):
he knew it's too late, no, breathed the woman named Orlean.
Speaker 5 (14:09):
No he can't be I am sorry, and I know
what he meant to you. You shall give him a
proper burial, I promise to.
Speaker 2 (14:16):
Let's a sound, interrupted, Amason. There was a commotion outside. Screams,
then a noise like a tree being split in two.
More screams, followed by a crash, than an impossibly loud roar.
Speaker 5 (14:30):
Absen quick with me.
Speaker 2 (14:32):
Director and the Curate ran to the cave entrance, where
a door made of thick logs stood open. Biom often
stood at this vantage, surveying his DEROTHI, his seekers, and
feeling something like a proud parent. They'd always been so
hard working, organized, pious and peaceful. But that is not
what he saw on this day. He saw Mayhem. Cabins
(14:56):
that had taken weeks to build, lay toppled. Farm animals
and Dorothy alike ran in all directions, crying in panic.
There were bodies, some of them torn in half, lying
limp and bloody on the ground. Standing in the middle
of all this chaos was a creature out of a nightmare,
(15:16):
a giant abomination, standing more than twice the height of
a man. It had reddish brown skin, roped with bulging muscle,
legs like tree trunks, long arms, with claw tipped fingers
roped in both directions for something to kill. Its face
was the face of a leering demon with a long chin,
(15:37):
fang filled maw, and a nose like a huge wilted
carrot between coal black eyes. Presently, it grabbed one of
his people and flung them against a tree. The victim
hit it hard, leaving a red mark behind as they
fell lifelessly to the ground. The next to die was
a goat, its head torn off in a single bite. Later,
(16:00):
Rector Bim would wonder how long he had stood there,
stunned by the massacre taking place below, before he found
the wherewithal to say something.
Speaker 5 (16:08):
To the caves. He called, everyone, get to the caves.
Speaker 2 (16:17):
Chapter twenty nine, Part five, Day twenty eight, late morning,
mythic event meaning transform wounds party status. The party status
is unchanged.
Speaker 6 (16:36):
Let's go to the caves first, said Achilia. Callin said
that de Rothi lived in the caves.
Speaker 1 (16:42):
It looks like they lived both in and out of
the caves. Perhaps we should look around outside first, said Tentier.
Speaker 4 (16:50):
No Achilia is right, was Durani's opinion. If there is
anything of value here, it would most likely be in
a place easy to protect.
Speaker 2 (17:00):
Fairwind looked concerned. He was unable to follow the conversation
taking place in Elvish, but he could see the brothers
gesturing up at the caves.
Speaker 6 (17:08):
Whatever happened here, I think it happened a.
Speaker 2 (17:10):
Long time ago, said Achilia. The steak skeletons looked old.
She thought sun had bleached the bones, and none of
them seemed to have any flesh remaining. All in all,
it seemed to suggest that nature and the elements had
been working on them for some time. The companions picked
their way through the remains of the village. Before long
they could smell a strong ammonia like odour, with musky
(17:33):
notes present too. Its source was impossible to determine. The
smell seemed to be everywhere at once. Achillia wrinkled her
nose in distaste and wondered if some animals might have
made a lair here. A head and to her left
was the rock wall, perforated with cave openings, a half
broken scaffold of wooden stairs and platforms yet clung to it.
(17:54):
To her right, with the shattered log cabins looking darkly forlorn,
she followed her companions as they walked around a large
rectangle of wood nailed together with a heavy cross beam.
Perhaps it had once been a wall, she thought. Now
that they were inside the village commons, she could see
evidence that some things had been moved around furrows in
the earth where heavy timbers had been dragged, for example.
(18:16):
Achilia thought they might represent some post disaster attempt to rebuild,
though if that was true, the effort must have been
abandoned fairly quickly. Derrenny By now had arrived at and
was testing his weight on the wooden scaffolding. He looked
back at the others and nodded, signaling his confidence that
the structure would hold their weight. Luckily, much of the
original construction was still intact, and so climbing to the
(18:38):
lowest of the cave mouths, some twenty feet above the
basin floor, was done without too much difficulty. Once they
reached it, they found a wooden frame nailed securely around
the aperture. Empty rusted hinges showed where a door might
have once been, and Achilia looked down with new understanding
that the wooden rectangle they'd stepped around earlier, somehow it
had come free. With stress marks on the frame. It
(19:01):
appeared to have been ripped off. Inside the cavern was large.
It was oval shaped, some forty feet deep and twenty across.
There was a broken bench and an empty wooden rack
was bolted into the rock wall. A pair of sconces,
both holding unlit torches, had likewise been permanently fixed to
(19:22):
the walls, opposite each other. At the far end of
the cavern, just at the point where the light from
the outside began to dim, the single pinched corridor of
smooth natural rock led away into the darkness. The party
has found the ruined remains of Duroth, a religious settlement
of men and women who shared a single purpose. The
(19:43):
name Darroth comes from Old Zation and means the search.
Drothi accordingly means searchers or seekers. The D'arrothi used to
number sixty and included members who specialized in building, providing food,
protecting the community, and most importantly, exploring the surrounding area.
The belief was that this region hit a sacred secret,
(20:05):
a place called the Golden Path, and the Derothe were
led here by a sacred text with the aim of
finding it. To that end, they prioritized map making and
study of scripture more than any other task. Of course,
the dorothe never found what they were looking for, but
something found them. One day, an expedition ran across a
giant troll, and a member of the group named Jesson
(20:26):
made the unwise decision to flee homeward. He led the
monster straight to Duroth, and once there it wreaked destruction.
This brings us to the present. Droth is now the
giant troll's layer, but it can't spend all of its
time in the ruined village. The supply of human meat
has long since been extinguished. It needs to go out
and hunt. This brings me to some dice rolls. This episode,
(20:49):
because of its many flashbacks, almost got away from me
without making any But now it's time to inject some
chaos to begin. The decision to use a giant troll
for this set piece encounter was born of my event
meaning transform wounds to me. That just screams troll ahead,
So I'll need a new one. Rolling D one hundred
twice gives me forty five celebrate and thirty possessions. No
(21:15):
idea how to use that right now, but something I'll
come up.
Speaker 5 (21:17):
I have faith.
Speaker 2 (21:18):
The next roll will be for a custom mechanic I'm
thinking of the giant troll is off hunting right now,
but it is critical to know how long it'll be
away if it comes back while the companions are still
in the cave. Well, at eight hit dice, it is
one tough customer. Here's my idea. I'll roll two D
ten and multiply that number by ten. That's how many
minutes will elapse before the giant troll returns. It's a
(21:42):
classic countdown clock. Okay, rolling two D ten gives me eleven.
Could be better, could be worse. It means that the
PCs will have one hour and fifty minutes to search,
to growth and get out of there. Whether or not
that will be enough time, well, the answer to that
will have to wait. Thank you for listening to Tale
(22:06):
of the manticor if you'd like to help to support
the show, there are lots of ways to do so.
You can recommend it online or to friends. You could
like and repost episode announcements on social media. You can
pick up one of my offerings on drive through RPG
or Tale of the Manticore t shirt at bare arts
dot store. There are now two designs available, by the way. Finally,
you can rate or review the show on your podcatter
(22:26):
of choice. These ratings and reviews really work to go
a long way to help the show become more discoverable.
And just because I say it at the end of
every episode, and I've been saying it for years, it
is just as true as ever. I am very grateful
for your support. Let's hear a listener of you right now.
This one was left by Ben on Podchaser. Ben writes,
(22:46):
part actual play, part audio drama, Tale of the Manticore
is an absolute muscle listen for anyone that loves dark
D and D adventure. The sound design is amazing and
the host's incredible storyteller makes an enthralling journey out of
random dice rolls. The characters are all perfectly written and performed,
and the reactions to the fate of the dice are
natural and believable, with a few amazing surprises thrown in
(23:07):
for good measure. This podcast single handedly convinced me to
pick up old school Essentials so that I could play
through my own old school D and D stories. Five stars.
Thanks for putting on an incredible show. Thanks a million, Ben,
very gratifying to hear that the story feels natural and believable.
It's something I strive for because I do find a
lot of actual plays tend to yank me out of
(23:28):
my suspension of disbelief fairly regularly. Also, glad if I
turned on to old school essentials, that system is still
currently my favorite at the mic and at the table haint.
Can someone out there please tell Gavin Norman to sponsor
this show already? Isn't that a match made in heaven? Well,
a boy can dream anyway. Thanks for the great review, Ben,
much obliged. Where would I be without my amazing cast
(23:50):
of actors. This episode features six voices, both familiar and new.
We have the core cast of Duretti, Tantier, and fair Wind,
played by Kayellen, Kevin Barringer, and David Cooper, respectively. Returning
to the show from season two is John Meardick, who
hosts the Blue fifty eight podcast about the Green Bay
Packers and who co runs the Arcane Discovery's Instagram page
(24:11):
with his wife Liz to showcase all kinds of TTRPG
creators and makers. Another returney is Dot of the Bite
Sized Tales and restingglicks Face podcasts Dot Blaze Orlean. Finally,
I'm Happy to introduce Rob de Ville, paladin of podcast
on Side Quests and mastermind of Epic Table Games. In
this episode, Rob plays curate amzin By. Thanks to Kayellen, Kevin,
(24:34):
David John dot and Rob for the great work. For
those curious to learn a bit more about Tale of
the Manticor, I keep a blog where I post all
kinds of show on RPG related stuff like art, maps, tables, crafts,
and show notes. You can find it at tale of
themanticore dot blogspot dot com or tale of themanticore dot com.
To get in touch with me, I'm at tale of
themantcor dot Blue sky dot Social, Tale of the Manticor
(24:55):
podcast on Instagram, or tale of themantacre gmail dot com.
Did you catch that there's something new?
Speaker 4 (25:01):
Just then?
Speaker 2 (25:01):
Tale of the Manticor now has its own URL currently
and for the foreseeable future. This just points to the blog,
but it's something I've been meaning to do for ages
and I've just gotten around to special thanks to Christopher
Green for his patient guidance in helping me to set
it up. Also, since I'm mentioning the blog and things
long overdue, I'm going to post updated character sheets for
(25:22):
all PC's shortly after this episode, sorry that I haven't
done so sooner. The eventual will continue on the next
episode of Tale of the manticor the Story were Chaos Rolls. Hi,
I'm John from Tale of the Manticor.
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Myself and with our solo roleplaying audio narrative, actual play
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See you there,
Hello, This is Nate from Family Tabletop and you are
listening to Tale of the Manticor.
Speaker 2 (00:09):
The following podcast is intended for a mature audience. Listener
discretion is advised. Welcome back to Tale of the Manticor
(00:31):
Season three. Like the creature from which it takes its name,
Tale of the Manticor is a mashup, a cross breeding
between two different species of storytelling. Here you will find
the unpredictability of old school paper and dice games with
the story craft of a dark fantasy novel. No character
is sacred, and none will be spared if the dice
(00:52):
decide their fate is at hand. According to Lare, the
Tale of a Manticore is barbed with cruel iron spike.
There will be much pain in the days ahead. Last
(01:13):
time on Tale of the Manticor, the previous chapter picks
up in the middle of the conversation with the elves
Colin and Zotope, who give the party directions to derowth
Achillea now believes this to be the most likely place
to find Odok Zagog. It is a little closer and
a little further west than Elder Valken had told them
to expect, but that could easily be chalked up to
(01:35):
an imperfect memory. She reasons. Colin and Zotope also provide
directions to a nearby lake and some provisions before taking
their leave. The lake turns out to be a place
of picturesque natural beauty. Here Kord undergoes another set of
changes as he slowly evolves into his potential. The companions
leave the next morning and for two days journey to
(01:58):
the northwest. At one point, the party crests arise and
stops to admire a mountain range in the distance. From here,
it is only another dozen miles to their destination, and
on the morning of the next day to discover something.
Achillea tenyr, Cord, and Fairwind have yet to see what
it is, but de Renni in the lead can be
heard cursing and drawing his sword. Chapter twenty nine, Part one,
(02:29):
Day twenty nine, late morning mythic event meaning transform wounds.
Party status Achillea nine out of nine hit points, Cord
eighteen of eighteen, de Renni twelve of twelve, ten Tier
(02:51):
fifteen of fifteen, fair Wind eighteen of eighteen. Supplies. The
companions have eight portions of food remaining. Spells available achillia
can cast shrink times jew and glitter dust cord can
cast entangle and slow poison. When the others cleared the
(03:17):
top of the embankment, they saw what had alarmed de Rennie.
The skeleton, human by the looks of it, impaled on
a stake. The steak itself was a roughly denuded sapling.
It ran up through the rib cage, with its sharpened
tip protruding from a mouth pushed wide open by its girth.
As for Dorenni, he was wheeling about, looking in all
(03:37):
directions for potential threats, his sword raised and ready. Not
fifty paces from the first staked skeleton was another. This
one still had long, filthy hair clinging to the top
of its skull. A third impelled corpse could be seen
at roughly the same distance in the other direction.
Speaker 1 (03:54):
What kind of people are these?
Speaker 2 (03:56):
Drothi as ten Tire in horror. He was staring up
at the tip of one of the steaks. It was
stained a dark color. What kind?
Speaker 3 (04:04):
Indeed?
Speaker 2 (04:05):
Said Ferwind He noticed with a revulsion that many of
the bones had rough scoring on them, implying they'd be
not upon these marks. They don't look like they were
made by weapons.
Speaker 3 (04:16):
Though I am no expert in the matter.
Speaker 2 (04:18):
By now, dur Any was satisfied that there was no
immediate threats nearby, and he came over to scrutinize the marks.
Speaker 4 (04:25):
Not by weapons, no, but these do not look like
they were made by wolves either, at least not after
these steaks were planted. Look, the marks go all the
way to the top of the skull.
Speaker 2 (04:40):
It was true, Something large and sharp must have scraped
across them to leave marks.
Speaker 4 (04:44):
So deep, Achillie, are you sure you want to go on?
Speaker 2 (04:48):
The half elf pressed her lips into a thin line
and nodded sharply. These gruesome scarecrows were not what she
had hoped to find here, but she was not about
to be frightened off so easily.
Speaker 1 (04:59):
They're a warning to intruders, that's for certain, said Tintyre soberly.
Didn't Colin say that Dorothy were an unfriendly.
Speaker 4 (05:06):
People, He said they were unpredictable. De Rennie corrected, and
that he had not personally met any of them. We
shall move ahead, but everyone keep a sharp eye out
for trouble.
Speaker 2 (05:19):
With that, he sheathed his sword and readied his bow.
Come on, The quintet moved beyond the border suggested by
the grim sentries and continued in their original direction. They
did not keep their usual single file order, however, but
found out into two ranks, so that De Renni, Tintyr,
and Court were in the lead, and Achilia and fair
(05:39):
Wind walked behind them. The land declined after a few
minutes while the companions passed a number of ancient sentinel
oaks and a few slouching sycamores. Then it rose up
over a knuckled hump. When they reached the top, they
were looking down upon De Roth. The small settlement was
built into a basin that fell away from the forest
on one and rose up into a rock wall on
(06:02):
the other. Four or five cave openings were visible on
the side of that rock wall, all of which had
signs of architectural modification. In the basin with the shattered
remains of six structures. They had once been log houses,
sturdily built too by appearances, but the scene in general
looked as though a cyclone had touched down here, for
(06:22):
every building lay in shambles, with timbers shattered and roofs
torn off. Broken trees lay helter skelter on the ground.
In the center was the only thing that did not
appear damaged a stone. Well more of the staked skeletons
were present here, too, many more. They ringed the place,
leaning at angles and pointing every which way. Taken all
(06:45):
at once, it was an awesome scene to behold, one
of immense wreckage and desolation. Chapter twenty nine. Seven years ago.
Rector Bayum banged his staff on the ground to get
(07:07):
his curate's attention. When the younger man turned around, he.
Speaker 5 (07:10):
Said, see to it that the children are gathered for
noontime prayers, and have yu laan pen.
Speaker 2 (07:14):
The animals director surveyed the community below from where he
stood in the cave mouth. They had done well here.
It was a hard life to have chosen, but a
good one. Yes, there was more work to be done,
that was certain, But in a Hayes name they had
done well. While they had no more than a handful
of buildings and their members numbered, But sixty de Roth
(07:35):
was a village.
Speaker 5 (07:37):
Where there is faith, there is purpose.
Speaker 2 (07:39):
He muttered to himself. The latest expedition would return to
day a hay willing, and when they did, another section
of their ever growing map would be filled in. And
there was always the chance. But no, it was better
not to hope for too much. Success would come in time.
Scripture and exploration would be their compass and their vessel.
(08:00):
One day they would find it. They needed only be
patient and diligent with their efforts. They needed only to
have faith, and he did. In Abundance, Chapter twenty nine,
Part three, Day twenty eight, late morning, mythic event meaning
(08:25):
transform wounds party status. The party's status is unchanged. What
in the name of Sadal happened here? Breathed Farewyin. The
companions were arranged in a line along the rim of
the natural bowl that contained what was once presumably the
village of Duroth. Their eyes moved from the shattered log buildings,
(08:47):
to the caves with their broken timber platforms and empty
door frames, and then to the numerous staked skeletons sticking
it from the ground like so many morbid trees. Listen, Achillee,
I've been thinking. It is well known.
Speaker 3 (09:03):
That odok Zygog is reckless.
Speaker 2 (09:06):
Could it be that we have.
Speaker 3 (09:08):
Come to the wrong place?
Speaker 2 (09:10):
A Chillia didn't want that to be true.
Speaker 6 (09:13):
I don't know, but with humans being so uncommon, I mean,
this place being so close to our destination, it can't
be a coincidence?
Speaker 7 (09:24):
Can it?
Speaker 3 (09:25):
Have you seen any of the places in your sketchbook
over the last few days?
Speaker 2 (09:30):
Achillia shook her head. No, of course she hadn't, Otherwise
she would have said something, I think it's worth a
closer look.
Speaker 6 (09:38):
I mean, it doesn't appear that anyone still lives here.
Speaker 3 (09:41):
If it were for all those skeletons, I would agree,
said Fairwind, what do you think?
Speaker 2 (09:46):
Cord the wooden construct rocked from side to side in
his way of saying, I don't know.
Speaker 3 (09:54):
Perhaps you should ask de Renni and Tantya what they think.
Speaker 2 (09:58):
The half elf did, and both brothers replied that a
cautious investigation was warranted. Tender was clearly curious to see more.
He had always been fascinated by the race of men,
and still was despite the bad experience as they had
shared in the Kymore Ruins and the presence of the
skeletons here. Derenni was more practical.
Speaker 4 (10:17):
Fair Wind is in dire need of equipment, and there
might be something he could make use of here. It
may be worth a look.
Speaker 2 (10:25):
With that, the companions left the ridge and began their
descent into the broken reveins of Duroth. Chapter twenty nine,
Part four. Rector Biam held the first scroll of Galindoo
(10:49):
in his hand and gazed down upon the great map
lost in concentration. This map incomplete, though it was represented
all that his people had accomplished over the life just
six years. The scroll had led them to this part
of Marith after they'd deciphered as riddles, but without the
second scroll, the information was incomplete, and the location of
(11:10):
the Golden Path was still unknown. The rector wondered if
the second scroll really had been destroyed, as most followers
of Ahea believed, or if it had just been lost.
Should someone happen to find it, then there would be
reason to hurry. The search would become a race. But
if that had happened, he was confident he would know
(11:31):
they would have come into contact with other searchers. By now,
they had encountered hardships, sure, wild animals, illness, even marauding monsters,
but they had always been able to protect themselves. His
people had made stout buildings and sturdy doors. Their caves
were virtually impregnable, and of course, when this was not enough,
(11:51):
they could fight. A noise from the next room brought
him from.
Speaker 7 (11:58):
His musing doctor baiorected by him. It was the voice
of his number two, the Curate ams In. The younger
man burst into the cave room barefoot and half dressed.
His hair was disheveled, and there was blood on his fingers.
When his wide eyes found the rector, relief washed over him.
Speaker 5 (12:16):
Oh thank you, Hey, you're here.
Speaker 2 (12:18):
The Curate was clearly out of breath.
Speaker 5 (12:20):
What has happened to Amson? Speak man?
Speaker 2 (12:23):
It took a moment for the Curate to gather the
necessary wind to.
Speaker 7 (12:26):
Reply, it's Jesson.
Speaker 5 (12:29):
He's returned to him. The expedition is back.
Speaker 2 (12:31):
So soon queried by him, noticing the blood on Amson's hands,
he was already making ready to leave.
Speaker 1 (12:37):
It's only Jesson, and and he's hurt, badly hurt something.
I don't know what, but something attacked him.
Speaker 2 (12:45):
By him, snatched his holy symbol from the tabletop.
Speaker 5 (12:48):
Take me to him right away, Curate.
Speaker 2 (12:51):
Amsen led by him through a series of caverns on
the way to a larger space that was closer to
the entrance. Here slouched on a chair with the woman
to either side trying to hold him upright was Jesson
or what was left to him for the man's left
hand should have been. There was now a gory stump.
A great piece of his right shoulder was missing as well.
(13:12):
His chained shirt had been stripped off and blood stained
his undershirt down to the waist. When they had left
on the expedition, Jesson had been wearing a steel helm
and carrying a shield. Those were nowhere to be seen.
One of the two women by his side looked up
and said, he came in by the goat pen looking
like this, incoherent moderin about beIN sorry and trying not
(13:34):
to come home.
Speaker 4 (13:35):
We brought him straight here.
Speaker 2 (13:37):
You were right to do so, Orlean, said the rector,
gripping his simple tightly.
Speaker 5 (13:41):
Lift him upright, so I'm attend to him.
Speaker 2 (13:43):
With an effort, the two women hauled the injured man
into a fully upright position. It was no eiasy feet.
Jesson was a warrior, and his thickly muscled physique made
him heavy. It didn't help that Jesson's body had gone
completely slack by now. A pool of blood was spreading
under his chair. When Baum looked into the warrior's eyes,
(14:04):
he knew it's too late, no, breathed the woman named Orlean.
Speaker 5 (14:09):
No he can't be I am sorry, and I know
what he meant to you. You shall give him a
proper burial, I promise to.
Speaker 2 (14:16):
Let's a sound, interrupted, Amason. There was a commotion outside. Screams,
then a noise like a tree being split in two.
More screams, followed by a crash, than an impossibly loud roar.
Speaker 5 (14:30):
Absen quick with me.
Speaker 2 (14:32):
Director and the Curate ran to the cave entrance, where
a door made of thick logs stood open. Biom often
stood at this vantage, surveying his DEROTHI, his seekers, and
feeling something like a proud parent. They'd always been so
hard working, organized, pious and peaceful. But that is not
what he saw on this day. He saw Mayhem. Cabins
(14:56):
that had taken weeks to build, lay toppled. Farm animals
and Dorothy alike ran in all directions, crying in panic.
There were bodies, some of them torn in half, lying
limp and bloody on the ground. Standing in the middle
of all this chaos was a creature out of a nightmare,
(15:16):
a giant abomination, standing more than twice the height of
a man. It had reddish brown skin, roped with bulging muscle,
legs like tree trunks, long arms, with claw tipped fingers
roped in both directions for something to kill. Its face
was the face of a leering demon with a long chin,
(15:37):
fang filled maw, and a nose like a huge wilted
carrot between coal black eyes. Presently, it grabbed one of
his people and flung them against a tree. The victim
hit it hard, leaving a red mark behind as they
fell lifelessly to the ground. The next to die was
a goat, its head torn off in a single bite. Later,
(16:00):
Rector Bim would wonder how long he had stood there,
stunned by the massacre taking place below, before he found
the wherewithal to say something.
Speaker 5 (16:08):
To the caves. He called, everyone, get to the caves.
Speaker 2 (16:17):
Chapter twenty nine, Part five, Day twenty eight, late morning,
mythic event meaning transform wounds party status. The party status
is unchanged.
Speaker 6 (16:36):
Let's go to the caves first, said Achilia. Callin said
that de Rothi lived in the caves.
Speaker 1 (16:42):
It looks like they lived both in and out of
the caves. Perhaps we should look around outside first, said Tentier.
Speaker 4 (16:50):
No Achilia is right, was Durani's opinion. If there is
anything of value here, it would most likely be in
a place easy to protect.
Speaker 2 (17:00):
Fairwind looked concerned. He was unable to follow the conversation
taking place in Elvish, but he could see the brothers
gesturing up at the caves.
Speaker 6 (17:08):
Whatever happened here, I think it happened a.
Speaker 2 (17:10):
Long time ago, said Achilia. The steak skeletons looked old.
She thought sun had bleached the bones, and none of
them seemed to have any flesh remaining. All in all,
it seemed to suggest that nature and the elements had
been working on them for some time. The companions picked
their way through the remains of the village. Before long
they could smell a strong ammonia like odour, with musky
(17:33):
notes present too. Its source was impossible to determine. The
smell seemed to be everywhere at once. Achillia wrinkled her
nose in distaste and wondered if some animals might have
made a lair here. A head and to her left
was the rock wall, perforated with cave openings, a half
broken scaffold of wooden stairs and platforms yet clung to it.
(17:54):
To her right, with the shattered log cabins looking darkly forlorn,
she followed her companions as they walked around a large
rectangle of wood nailed together with a heavy cross beam.
Perhaps it had once been a wall, she thought. Now
that they were inside the village commons, she could see
evidence that some things had been moved around furrows in
the earth where heavy timbers had been dragged, for example.
(18:16):
Achilia thought they might represent some post disaster attempt to rebuild,
though if that was true, the effort must have been
abandoned fairly quickly. Derrenny By now had arrived at and
was testing his weight on the wooden scaffolding. He looked
back at the others and nodded, signaling his confidence that
the structure would hold their weight. Luckily, much of the
original construction was still intact, and so climbing to the
(18:38):
lowest of the cave mouths, some twenty feet above the
basin floor, was done without too much difficulty. Once they
reached it, they found a wooden frame nailed securely around
the aperture. Empty rusted hinges showed where a door might
have once been, and Achilia looked down with new understanding
that the wooden rectangle they'd stepped around earlier, somehow it
had come free. With stress marks on the frame. It
(19:01):
appeared to have been ripped off. Inside the cavern was large.
It was oval shaped, some forty feet deep and twenty across.
There was a broken bench and an empty wooden rack
was bolted into the rock wall. A pair of sconces,
both holding unlit torches, had likewise been permanently fixed to
(19:22):
the walls, opposite each other. At the far end of
the cavern, just at the point where the light from
the outside began to dim, the single pinched corridor of
smooth natural rock led away into the darkness. The party
has found the ruined remains of Duroth, a religious settlement
of men and women who shared a single purpose. The
(19:43):
name Darroth comes from Old Zation and means the search.
Drothi accordingly means searchers or seekers. The D'arrothi used to
number sixty and included members who specialized in building, providing food,
protecting the community, and most importantly, exploring the surrounding area.
The belief was that this region hit a sacred secret,
(20:05):
a place called the Golden Path, and the Derothe were
led here by a sacred text with the aim of
finding it. To that end, they prioritized map making and
study of scripture more than any other task. Of course,
the dorothe never found what they were looking for, but
something found them. One day, an expedition ran across a
giant troll, and a member of the group named Jesson
(20:26):
made the unwise decision to flee homeward. He led the
monster straight to Duroth, and once there it wreaked destruction.
This brings us to the present. Droth is now the
giant troll's layer, but it can't spend all of its
time in the ruined village. The supply of human meat
has long since been extinguished. It needs to go out
and hunt. This brings me to some dice rolls. This episode,
(20:49):
because of its many flashbacks, almost got away from me
without making any But now it's time to inject some
chaos to begin. The decision to use a giant troll
for this set piece encounter was born of my event
meaning transform wounds to me. That just screams troll ahead,
So I'll need a new one. Rolling D one hundred
twice gives me forty five celebrate and thirty possessions. No
(21:15):
idea how to use that right now, but something I'll
come up.
Speaker 5 (21:17):
I have faith.
Speaker 2 (21:18):
The next roll will be for a custom mechanic I'm
thinking of the giant troll is off hunting right now,
but it is critical to know how long it'll be
away if it comes back while the companions are still
in the cave. Well, at eight hit dice, it is
one tough customer. Here's my idea. I'll roll two D
ten and multiply that number by ten. That's how many
minutes will elapse before the giant troll returns. It's a
(21:42):
classic countdown clock. Okay, rolling two D ten gives me eleven.
Could be better, could be worse. It means that the
PCs will have one hour and fifty minutes to search,
to growth and get out of there. Whether or not
that will be enough time, well, the answer to that
will have to wait. Thank you for listening to Tale
(22:06):
of the manticor if you'd like to help to support
the show, there are lots of ways to do so.
You can recommend it online or to friends. You could
like and repost episode announcements on social media. You can
pick up one of my offerings on drive through RPG
or Tale of the Manticore t shirt at bare arts
dot store. There are now two designs available, by the way. Finally,
you can rate or review the show on your podcatter
(22:26):
of choice. These ratings and reviews really work to go
a long way to help the show become more discoverable.
And just because I say it at the end of
every episode, and I've been saying it for years, it
is just as true as ever. I am very grateful
for your support. Let's hear a listener of you right now.
This one was left by Ben on Podchaser. Ben writes,
(22:46):
part actual play, part audio drama, Tale of the Manticore
is an absolute muscle listen for anyone that loves dark
D and D adventure. The sound design is amazing and
the host's incredible storyteller makes an enthralling journey out of
random dice rolls. The characters are all perfectly written and performed,
and the reactions to the fate of the dice are
natural and believable, with a few amazing surprises thrown in
(23:07):
for good measure. This podcast single handedly convinced me to
pick up old school Essentials so that I could play
through my own old school D and D stories. Five stars.
Thanks for putting on an incredible show. Thanks a million, Ben,
very gratifying to hear that the story feels natural and believable.
It's something I strive for because I do find a
lot of actual plays tend to yank me out of
(23:28):
my suspension of disbelief fairly regularly. Also, glad if I
turned on to old school essentials, that system is still
currently my favorite at the mic and at the table haint.
Can someone out there please tell Gavin Norman to sponsor
this show already? Isn't that a match made in heaven? Well,
a boy can dream anyway. Thanks for the great review, Ben,
much obliged. Where would I be without my amazing cast
(23:50):
of actors. This episode features six voices, both familiar and new.
We have the core cast of Duretti, Tantier, and fair Wind,
played by Kayellen, Kevin Barringer, and David Cooper, respectively. Returning
to the show from season two is John Meardick, who
hosts the Blue fifty eight podcast about the Green Bay
Packers and who co runs the Arcane Discovery's Instagram page
(24:11):
with his wife Liz to showcase all kinds of TTRPG
creators and makers. Another returney is Dot of the Bite
Sized Tales and restingglicks Face podcasts Dot Blaze Orlean. Finally,
I'm Happy to introduce Rob de Ville, paladin of podcast
on Side Quests and mastermind of Epic Table Games. In
this episode, Rob plays curate amzin By. Thanks to Kayellen, Kevin,
(24:34):
David John dot and Rob for the great work. For
those curious to learn a bit more about Tale of
the Manticor, I keep a blog where I post all
kinds of show on RPG related stuff like art, maps, tables, crafts,
and show notes. You can find it at tale of
themanticore dot blogspot dot com or tale of themanticore dot com.
To get in touch with me, I'm at tale of
themantcor dot Blue sky dot Social, Tale of the Manticor
(24:55):
podcast on Instagram, or tale of themantacre gmail dot com.
Did you catch that there's something new?
Speaker 4 (25:01):
Just then?
Speaker 2 (25:01):
Tale of the Manticor now has its own URL currently
and for the foreseeable future. This just points to the blog,
but it's something I've been meaning to do for ages
and I've just gotten around to special thanks to Christopher
Green for his patient guidance in helping me to set
it up. Also, since I'm mentioning the blog and things
long overdue, I'm going to post updated character sheets for
(25:22):
all PC's shortly after this episode, sorry that I haven't
done so sooner. The eventual will continue on the next
episode of Tale of the manticor the Story were Chaos Rolls. Hi,
I'm John from Tale of the Manticor.
Speaker 5 (25:40):
Maddie cyl from a Game of One Zone.
Speaker 8 (25:42):
PJ from a Wasteland story, and the Solo role Players.
Speaker 2 (25:44):
Podcast Simon from Legend of the Bones.
Speaker 8 (25:47):
Brian ride Out from Swords Against Madness, Calm from The
Lone Adventurer.
Speaker 2 (25:51):
And I'm Shaik from Role by.
Speaker 1 (25:53):
Myself and with our solo roleplaying audio narrative, actual play
drama powers combined, we are the Solo role Players Podcast Network.
Speaker 8 (26:02):
Usually accustomed to delving the.
Speaker 4 (26:04):
Depths, scaring the desert, surviving the wasteland.
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Or facing the dragon alone, this time we have teamed
up to bring you a curated collection of the best,
highest quality, most rumatic, and diceiest solo roleplay podcasts in
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To Solo Roleplayers Network dot com, sample and subscribe to
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Discover your new favorite solo role playing podcast.
Speaker 5 (26:35):
See you there,
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