The Bewitching Bell Campaignby LeondudeChaptersChapter 1 - Meet the PartyChapter 3 - The Taunting PrenchChapter 4 - The Adorable AbominationsChapter 5 - Seriously, Flurry?!Chapter 2 - Enter the Forces of TambelonChapter 1 - Meet the PartyIt was a fine summer’s evening as Luster Dawn and the incognito Flurry Heart made their way to the Ponyville Theatre, where they would meet up with the rest of Luster’s friends to engage in a battle against the forces of darkness. The theatre was closed for the day and it was Griselda’s idea to have their O&O session there so they won’t be disturbed. And so they could be as loud and over-the-top as they want when they’re in character. “Are you sure your friends won’t get all excited when they see me?” Flurry asked. “They seem like level-headed guys and girls,” Luster replied, “I don’t think they’d be that excited.” They entered the theatre and, in the centre of the stage, sat a dark-feathered griffon, an Earth pony with a spiky orange mane, a yak and a kirin. They were positioned in a circle around the O&O board. “Who’s the pony in the getup?” the griffon asked as she pointed to Flurry Heart. “Promise you guys won’t freak out?” Luster asked her friends. “Lus, I would go up in flames if I freaked out,” the kirin casually replied, “Trust me, I wouldn’t freak out even if I wanted to.” “Glad to hear it,” Luster said, “Now let’s give our Game Master a warm welcome.” Flurry Heart took off her trenchcoat and fedora and pulled down the bandana covering her mouth. Surprisingly, there wasn’t even the slightest bit of a reaction from anyone in the vicinity. Except for the orange-maned pony. “Oh my goodness,” the pony squeed excitedly, “We’re having an O&O session with an actual princess! And not just any old princess but Princess Flurry Heart of the Crystal Empire, who fought the nefarious King Lavan when he tried to take the Crystal Heart.” “Actually, it was the A.M.C that took the Crystal Heart,” Flurry corrected the esteemed Earth pony, “But I did fight King Lavan and his army of lava demons later on.” “Ah,” the pony said sheepishly, “My bad.” “Allow me to introduce you to everypony,” Luster said as she pointed at the ginger pony, “This is Novus Flare.” Novus curtsied, “It is a pleasure to meet you, your majesty.” Luster pointed to the griffon, “Griselda.” “S’up,” Griselda greeted Flurry Heart. Luster pointed to the kirin, “River Song.” “No relation to the archeologist that married Doctor Whooves,” River stated. “Doctor Who?” Flurry asked. “He deals with timey-wimey things,” River replied, “I’m surprised you never heard of him.” “Yeah, I don’t leave the Crystal Empire that often,” Flurry said sheepishly, “My parents worry that I might break something.” “So they keep you in a place made out of crystals?” Griselda asked sardonically, “Oh, the irony.” Flurry giggled, “Tell me about it.” “And over here is Sasha,” Luster said as she pointed at the yak, “She’s still learning Ponish.” Sasha nodded. “Now that I have introduced everpony,” Luster said. “And the yak and griffin,” Griselda snarkily butted in. “Let’s play some O&O!” Luster announced excitedly. “Before we start, I’d like to point out there are some costumes in the back,” Novus stated as he pointed at a door, “Can I go get them? It will help everypony here get into character.” “Uh...sure,” Luster replied. “Brilliant!” Novus exclaimed excitedly before dashing into the room. While waiting for Novus to get the costumes, Flurry sat behind the small partition screen near the board while Luster sat near her. “So...anypony else new to this?” Luster asked awkwardly. Everyone in the vicinity shook their heads in response. “I got 5 years worth of XP and Gold on me,” Griselda replied. Flurry turned to Luster, “If you like, I could help you with your character.” “Yeah, that would be a good start,” Luster said nervously. “Class?” Flurry asked. “Uh...what classes are there?” Luster asked. “There are thirteen classes to choose from,” Flurry replied, “You have archer, barbarian, bard, black knight, brawler, cleric, druid, enchanter or enchantress, mage, monk, paladin, rogue and sorcerer.” Luster shrugged, “Well, I already know magic. I think I’m gonna be a mage.” “Good choice,” Flurry said, “And just between the two of us, my first character was a mage as well.” Luster chuckled, “Great minds think alike.” “Indeed they do, now what’s your character’s name?” Flurry asked. “What do you think would be a good name for a mage?” Luster asked. “I know from experience that Merry Do is an embarrassing name to give a character,” Flurry replied before giggling, “How about something like Usterlay?” “Usterlay the Mage,” Luster said, “I like it.” Novus trotted back to the group carrying a great big pile of costumes in his hooves. “A hooded cloak and plastic dagger for our dashing rogue,” Novus said as he passed the dagger and cloak to Griselda. “Thanks,” Griselda said. “A fur coat and wooden staff for our druid,” Novus said as he passed the coat and staff to River. “Nice,” River said. “A horned helmet and an axe for our barbarian,” Novus said as he passed the helmet and axe to Sasha. Sasha smiled at her choice of clothing. “And a fire-proof tunic for your friendly neighbourhood sorcerer,” Novus said as he put on the tunic. “Right, because a guy that practices pyromancy would be friendly,” Griselda deadpanned. River cleared her throat. “No offence, River,” Griselda said. “None taken,” River said back. “So, what’s our new member of the group gonna be?” Novus asked Luster. “A mage,” Luster replied. “Perfect!” Novus said excitedly, “We always need more magic types in this little band of ours. Here’s a wizard hat and a golden sceptre.” Luster looked at the grey wizard hat, “Do you have any in purple?” “Ah,” Novus replied, “I will have a checksie.” Novus dug into what remained of the costume pile until he fished out a purple wizard hat. Luster inspected the hat to make sure there weren’t any bugs or bunnies in there, “Thank you.” “So, what kind of adventure are we going on?” Novus asked, “A haunted mansion? Saving a princess? Maybe some aggressive negotiations with a group of bandits.” “I’m thinking more along the lines of a classic,” Flurry replied. Author's Note For the record, none of the names of Luster's friends (apart from Griselda) are official. Novus and Sasha are ones that I made based on their appearance and River Song is a name I read somewhere while traversing the MLP wiki. Not entirely sure who originally coined that name. Oh, and any resemblance to Twilight's friends (personality-wise) is entirely coincidental. Trust me, I do not intend on Luster and her friends to be next in line to wield the Elements of Harmony. The current element bearers are the Young Six. Though that isn't to say they won't save the world at some point in the future. Or at least Luster and Flurry. Chapter 3 - The Taunting Prench“Wait!” Usterlay exclaimed, “I forgot to ask the princess to be more specific!” The GM laughed, “Not the first time, am I right?” After realizing her error, Usterlay galloped back to the princess before she could fly away. “Can I help you?” the princess asked, “Within reason because I will not accept any offers to join your party.” “You said we should save the world but we have no idea what to do,” Usterlay replied, “Apart from a fetch quest involving your latte, your majesty.” The princess chuckled, “To be fair, it was my fault for not telling you where the Bewitching Bell is. It is the source of the Father of Monsters’ power and is hidden away in a secret location that can only be found when all pieces of the map leading to this location are glued together. The first piece can be found in a tower guarded by soldiers with outrageous Prench accents.” Rogue facepalmed, “Mon dieu.” “The second piece can be found within the concubines of Castle Clop,” the princess exposited. “Don’t you mean ‘confines’?” Usterlay asked. “Nope, I meant concubines,” the princess bluntly replied, “The third piece can be found in a cave guarded by one ferocious lagomorph while the fourth piece can be found in Castle AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!” “Boy, am I glad I decided to have the O&O session here,” Rogue said as she cleaned out her ears, “Any louder and somepony would think we’re torturing the princess.” “Now go,” the princess commanded, “And don’t forget my latte.” And so the brave adventurers didn’t waste any time and galloped, or flew in the case of Rogue, away to the tower guarded by the Prenchponies. “No charging in like last time, Furnus,” Rogue said to her pyromaniacal companion, “I don’t wanna ‘nother repeat of last time.” “Cross my heart and hope to fly,” Furnus replied, “Stick a cupcake in my eye.” “What happened last time?” Usterlay asked. “Let’s just say everypony’s favourite hot-headed sorcerer decided to charge into an ogre-filled settlement while letting out the war cry of ‘Leeeroy Jeeenkins’, Rogue replied before shaking her head, “That poor cleric.” Usterlay titled her head, “Who’s Leroy Jenkins?” Furnus shrugged, “It’s just something I heard Sunset Shimmer say when I saw her and Princess Twilight teaming up to battle some ancient Tartarus escapee.” Rogue looked at Furnus funny, “What do you mean you saw?” “I fell through a crack in the space-time continuum and witnessed the battle first-hoof,” Furnus replied, “It happens.” Rogue shrugged, “Fair enough.” The adventurers finally arrived at the 40ft tall stone tower surrounded by dozens of Prench guards. From the very top of the tower, one of the guards popped his head out of the window. “Bonjour,” the guard said. “I’ll do the talking here,” Rogue said as she takes the initiative. “Who is it?” the guard asked. “I’m Rogue and these are my buddies,” Rogue replied as she pointed to her fellow party members, “Any chance you can tell your boss to give us the map piece?” After a surprisingly abysmal persuasion roll of 4, the Prench guard shook his head. “Aw, you gotta be kidding me,” Rogue said despondently. “Go and boil your bottoms, children of silly people!” the Prench guard taunted uproariously, “I blow my nose at your so-called princess! I fart in your general direction! Your father was a hamster and your mother smelt of elderberries!” “Yikes,” Melody muttered while snickering, “That’s the rudest Prench pony I have ever seen.” Then suddenly, out of nowhere, a very girthy cow was flung at the brave adventurers. “Sweet mother of the princess!” Furnus exclaimed. “I cast a force field,” Usterlay announced. “You need to be a level 6 to do that,” the GM pointed out. “Oh, right,” Usterlay said sheepishly, “Then I just run for my life.” “I shoot a fireball at the oncoming cow,” Furnus announced as he threw a fireball from his bare hooves. With a particularly lucky roll of 18, the fireball hit the cow and the cow exploded into a mushroom cloud of methane. “I can smell it already,” Melody said as she put her hooves to her nose. “Me too,” the GM said as she did the same, “Alright, who guffed?” As everypony began covering their noses, they turned towards Furnus. “Uh...whoever smelt it dealt it?” Furnus said sheepishly. “Whoever denied it supplied it,” Rogue nasally stated as she pinched her beak. “I know this is meant to be immersive but I don’t think it’s meant to be that immersive,” Usterlay said before gagging. “Good thing River Song has a good temper or we’ll all be blown to Tartarus,” Rogue said before chuckling. “Thanks,” Melody said. Author's Note In defence for whi this chapter is short, I had a very busy week and I' currently wasted. BTW, I was listening to this while uploading the chapter: Very fitting giving the hijinks the party in involved in. Oh, and a quick reminder of who's who and how they are doing: Just so you guys don't lose track of who's who: Luster Dawn/Usterlay Class: Mage Level: 2 HP: 14 STR: 10 DEX: 14 CON: 12 INT: 10 WIS: 24 CHA: 14 Sasha/Putia Class: Barbarian Level: 2 HP: 14 STR: 15 DEX: 12 CON: 11 INT: 7 WIS: 15 CHA: 10 River Song/Melody Class: Druid Level: 5 HP: 20 STR: 18 DEX: 27 CON: 19 INT: 19 WIS: 60 CHA: 25 Novus Flare/Furnus Class: Sorcerer Level: 10 HP: 70 STR: 21 DEX: 17 CON: 14 INT: 20 WIS: 120 CHA: 16 Griselda/Rogue Class: Rogue Level: 30 HP: 210 STR: 90 DEX: 140 CON: 124 INT: 100 WIS: 1224 CHA: 140 Oh, and Furnus gets 10XP for blowing up that cow. Chapter 4 - The Adorable AbominationsAfter the disastrous negotiations with the Prench, the brave adventurers wandered into the woods so they could get some wood for their Trojan Pony. “I know what I’d like some wood for,” Rogue said with a sly smirk. “Hey,” Usterlay said, “Keep it foal-friendly, will you?” “Dude, we’re going to be travelling to a place called Castle Clop after we’ve gotten the map piece from the Prench,” Rogue pointed out, “And since the GM said the other map piece is inside one of the concubines of that castle, something tells me this campaign’s going to get less foal-friendly very quickly.” Usterlay gave the GM a concerned look. “I promise I won’t do anything too graphic,” the GM said, “For all we know, the other map piece might be tucked up one of their dresses.” “Or maybe in their super-flammable panty drawers!” Furnus announced. Rogue glared at Furnus, “If one of the drawers contained the map piece and you burnt it to a crisp, I will never forgive you.” The adventurers suddenly paused in their path, for a giant three-headed Beagle blocked their path. “Aw, I love beagles!” River cooed. “Halt!” the Beagle barked, “Who art thou?” Rogue groaned, “Are we really gonna do this song and dance again?” “Yes,” the GM replied, “Just because you like to think of yourself as the most awesome O&O player to have ever graced Equestria doesn’t mean everypony knows who you are.” “Fine,” Rogue said in an annoyed manner, “I’m Rogue and these are my partners in crime. Except replace “crime” with saving the world.” “What do you want?” the Beagle barked. “I just said we’re here to save the world,” Rogue irately replied, “Now are you gonna move or am I gonna kick your butt?”. After another abysmal persuasion roll, the three-headed Beagle refused to give in to Rogue threat. “Really? Another one?” Rogue asked before glaring at the GM, “I swear you’re doing this on purpose.” The GM flashed Rogue a cheeky smirk of her own, “What gives you that idea?” “I’m afraid I can’ let you past,” the three-headed Beagle stated. Rogue cracked her knuckles, “In that case, it’s butt-kicking time. Boys and girls, you know what to do.” “If you’re going to fight us,” one of the Beagle heads said, “Then we’ll have no choice but to kill you.” “Have we?” another Beagle head asked the one next to him. “I don’t think so,” the third head replied. “Well, what do I think?” the other Beagle head asked. “I think kill him,” the first Beagle head replied. “Let’s be nice to each other,” the third Beagle head said. “Oh, shut up!” the first Beagle head shouted, “I want to bite their heads off!” “Oh, bite your own head off,” the third Beagle told the first, “You’ll do us all a favour.” “You’re lucky,” the second head said to the third, “You’re not next to him.” “What do you mean?” the first asked. “You snore!” the second one replied. “No, I don’t!” the first head snapped, “And you got bad breath!” The party just stared at the arguing three-headed Beagle. “If nopony minds,” Furnus said quietly, “I’m gonna turn him into a parsnip.” “You’re not going to use a fire spell on him,” Rogue said with mild surprise, “It’s a miracle.” “Even if it’s trying to kill us, why would I burn a cute little thing like that?!” Furnus exclaimed, “So I cast the Transform into Root Vegetable Spell! And kinda hope Melody has something that can turn the Beagle back into a Beagle as soon as we are done.” After a roll of 15, the three-headed Beagle’s legs shrunk and then all three of his heads shrunk until his body transmogrified into a massive parsnip. Rogue rubbed her belly, “Yum. Now we don’t have to worry about running low on HP any time soon.” Furnus slapped Rogue, “Don’t. Eat. The parsnip.” The brave adventurers lifted the heavy parsnip and carried it with them as they resumed their travels. Despite Furnus’ objections, they would have to eat the parsnip if there were no other options left. As they ventured onwards, they encountered a small pack of bushbabies. “Yay, more cuteness!” Melody squeed excitedly. “We are the tribe who saaaaay…” one of the bushbabies shrilled in a cacophonic manner, “Squee!” The party members flinched at the bushbaby’s utterance of the word “Squee”. “Oh no, not the tribe that says ‘Squee’,” Rogue said sarcastically. “The very same!” the bushbaby exclaimed, oblivious to Rogue’s sarcasm, “We are the keepers of the sacred words, and we demand a sacrifice.” “What is it with cute things trying to kill us today?” Melody asked. “Blame our sadistic game master,” Rogue replied as she pointed to the GM. “We did not say we wanted to sacrifice you!” the lead bushbaby spoke, “But we shall say ‘Squee’ to you again until you appease us.” “What do you want?” Usterlay asked. “We demand...a shrubbery!” the lead bushbaby replied. “A what?” Furnus asked. “It’s a thing with a load of shrubs,” Melody replied. “And what are shrubs?” Furnus asked. “They’re like bushes but smaller and more round,” Melody replied. “You must return here with a shrubbery!” the lead bushbaby demanded, “Or you will never pass through these woods alive! Oh, and make sure it’s a nice one! And not too expensive either! Now…..Go!” The adventurers turned around and made their way to the nearest town, hoping there would be a stall that sold shrubberies. And if there wasn’t, they could always find a stall that sold shrub seeds and have Melody use her druid magic to grow a shrubbery before the bushbabies’ very disproportionately large eyes. Author's Note Would have made this chapter a bit longer but I literally only wrote it today. Luster Dawn/Usterlay Class: Mage Level: 2 HP: 14 STR: 10 DEX: 14 CON: 12 INT: 10 WIS: 24 CHA: 14 Sasha/Putia Class: Barbarian Level: 2 HP: 14 STR: 15 DEX: 12 CON: 11 INT: 7 WIS: 15 CHA: 10 River Song/Melody Class: Druid Level: 5 HP: 20 STR: 18 DEX: 27 CON: 19 INT: 19 WIS: 60 CHA: 25 Novus Flare/Furnus Class: Sorcerer Level: 10 HP: 70 STR: 21 DEX: 17 CON: 14 INT: 20 WIS: 120 CHA: 16 Griselda/Rogue Class: Rogue Level: 30 HP: 210 STR: 90 DEX: 140 CON: 124 INT: 100 WIS: 1224 CHA: 140 Chapter 5 - Seriously, Flurry?!After a long trek to the nearest town, the adventurers had spotted a stall that had a massive, conveniently-placed sign next to it saying 'SHRUBBERIES FOR SALE!'. "Gee, I wonder if they sell shrubberies?" Rogue snarkily asked. "Would it kill you to not make a sarcastic comment for five minutes?" Melody asked. "What?" Rogue said defensively, "It's what my character does." Furnus zoomed up to the shopkeeper, "Hi there, do you have any shrubberies?" "None, I'm afraid," the shopkeeper replied, "All my shrubberies were stolen by a terrible beast of unfathomable cruelty." Putia embeds her axe into the stall, "Point us to beast." "Follow me," the shopkeeper said as he walked away from his stall. The adventurers followed the shopkeeper to the far end of the market before making their way into another forest. As they followed the shopkeeper into the forest, they saw that it was littered with the broken bones and mangled armour of deceased adventurers. The wind bellowed as they made their way up a hill after walking out of the forest. "Stop!" the shopkeeper exclaimed before pointing at a cave, "This is where our terrible foe resides." "Keep me covered," Putia said. "With what?" Usterlay asked. "Just keep me covered," Putia reiterated. "Too late!" the shopkeeper announced. From the cave crawled not a foul behemoth but a cute little bunny rabbit. "There it is," the shopkeeper whispered. "Behind rabbit?" Putia asked. "It is the rabbit," the shopkeeper replied. Rogue's eyes widened with horror, "Oh, no." Putia chuckled at her companion's fear, "You encountered rabbit before?" "Yes," Rogue replied, "And let me tell you guys you're not the first party I've joined that ran into this thing. I'm getting out of here." With a lucky roll of 18, Rogue immediately headed for the hills. Putia laughed, "You are most OP member of party! Why are you running from cute bunny?!" "Because I don't want to get eaten by 'cute bunny'!" Rogue replied, "And because I don't want the last five years of my life to go to waste." Putia continued laughing at her companion's cowardice. "I wouldn't laugh if I were you," the shopkeeper warned the barbarian, "That's the foulest, cruellest, bad-tempered lagomorph you will ever see in your life." "Sure, I believe you," Putia said in between chuckles, "I throw axe at cute bunny's head." With a roll of 12, the axe was thrown in the rabbit's direction. But, because Putia is under-levelled, the rabbit gobbled up the axe before it could even touch the rabbit's face. Suddenly, the rabbit lunged at Putia and ate her face off. "Wait, Putia's dead?!" Furnus exclaimed. "Yes," Putia replied despite being dead, "I am dead." "Why is Putia dead?" Furnus asked. "I think it was-" Putia replied before being rudely interrupted by the GM. "Shh!" the GM said, "You are dead." Putia shrugged, "Okay." Melody and Usterlay glared at the GM. "What?" the GM asked. "Stop trying to kill us with cute things!" Melody irately said, "Anyway, I shall use my connection with nature to reason with the rabbit." With a persuasion roll of 15, Melody approached the rabbit and tried to calm it from its murderous rage. Unfortunately, because Melody was also under-levelled, the rabbit gobbled her up as well. Usterlay continued to glare at the GM, You're doing this on purpose, aren't you?" The GM flashed a sly grin, "Maybe." "I told you our GM was sadistic!" Rogue yelled from the distance. "How powerful is this rabbit?" Furnus asked. "About level 200," the GM casually replied, "Why?" Furnus shrugged, "Well, it beats getting killed by falling rocks. And speaking of falling rocks, I cast a Meteor Swarm on this furry fiend." With a roll of 16, a meteor shower rained down upon the killer rabbit. But, because Furnus was under-levelled, it only did 1 HP of damage. Furnus gulped, "Mommy." The rabbit lunged at Furnus and gobbled him up. "I'm gonna do what Rogue did and make a run for it," Usterlay calmly stated. With a roll of 6, Usterlay only managed to gallop away for 5 miles before the rabbit caught up to her and gobbled her up. After the eventful session of O&O, Flurry trotted back to the Crystal Palace. She could have just flown back but it would be difficult to do so when she was wearing a trench coat to conceal her identity. After entering the palace, she hung up her fedora and trenchcoat and trotted upstairs to her room. Or that was what she intended to do were it not for her father making his way down the stairs first. "Hey, Flurry," Shining Armor said, "How did O&O with your friends go?" Flurry sheepishly put her hoof behind her head, "Uh..." Shining Armor frowned, "Did you kill another party with the Killer Rabbit of Care Bear Log?" "Well...not everyone," Flurry replied, "One of them made a run for it. And in my defence, I thought they could do with the extra XP. If they think the killer rabbit is bad, just wait until they encounter Grogar." "If they encounter Grogar," Shining pointed out. Flurry shrugged, "Nothing a resurrection potion or two can't fix. Anyway, do you mind if I stay in Ponyville for a month or two? I made this friend and I think she could use some help with her friendship studies. And who could be more qualified to help than the niece of the Princess of Friendship? Who also happens to be the daughter of the Princess of Love." Shining moved out of the way, "Sure thing, Flurry. A true friend helps a friend in need, after all." "I know," Flurry said as she trotted up the stairs, "I heard the song." "Just try not to kill everyone next time you and your friends play O&O," Shining said as his daughter trotted up the stairs. Flurry chuckled, "I can't make any promises." Author's Note Aaaand no-one's ever gonna want Flurry to be GM ever again. Luster Dawn/Usterlay Class: Mage Level: 2 HP: ~~14~~ 0 STR: 10 DEX: 14 CON: 12 INT: 10 WIS: 24 CHA: 14 Sasha/Putia Class: Barbarian Level: 2 HP: ~~14~~ 0 STR: 15 DEX: 12 CON: 11 INT: 7 WIS: 15 CHA: 10 River Song/Melody Class: Druid Level: 5 HP: ~~20~~ 0 STR: 18 DEX: 27 CON: 19 INT: 19 WIS: 60 CHA: 25 Novus Flare/Furnus Class: Sorcerer Level: 10 HP: ~~70~~ 0 STR: 21 DEX: 17 CON: 14 INT: 20 WIS: 120 CHA: 16 Griselda/Rogue Class: Rogue Level: 30 HP: 210 STR: 90 DEX: 140 CON: 124 INT: 100 WIS: 1224 CHA: 140 Chapter 2 - Enter the Forces of TambelonIt is 2052AA, in the year of the alicorns, eons since the brave heroes of old banished a dark and terrible foe known only as the Father of Monsters. While the echoes of their heroics slowly faded away into legend that soon became myth, life continued on in the peaceful realm of Equus. Until one day, the peaceful town of Horsehorn was invaded by an unnatural force of the living dead and other abominations. And at the reigns of this horrific horde was a demonic ram of unfathomable power that would make even the alicorns that ruled this land quake in their horseshoes. The Father of Monsters has returned. “Mwahahahaha!” the Father of Monsters cackled, “I have returned from my imprisonment to rule this land once again! And any who defy my will shall be destroyed then reforged as a part of my army!” But what this foe didn’t predict was that a group of adventurers have banded together to stop him. “That’s us!” Furnus whispered excitedly. “What?!” the Father of Monsters asked in shock, “Who dares defy my will?!” “Us, duh,” Rogue dryly replied. “Your arrogance blinds you, fools!” the Father of Monsters boasted, “Now it has cost everypony in this village their cutie marks!” The Father of Monsters cast a fiendish curse on the ponies of Horsehorn, in which they were stripped of their cutie marks. Apart from anypony that didn’t get their cutie marks yet, the villagers ran about screaming their lungs out. “I hope you enjoy a life without destiny except to serve ME!” the Father of Monsters bellowed. “Or we could just do our own thing,” Rogue pointed out as she pointed at her butt, “That’s what I did.” “SIIIILENCE!!!” the Father of Monsters shouted. The Father of Monsters conjured a gargantuan portal of darkness and summoned a boney behemoth clad in black armour. It wielded a massive jousting spear long enough to poke somepony’s eye out should they get too close. “As punishment for your insolence,” the Father of Monsters snarled, “I summon the Skeletal Dragon Dragoon to destroy you!” “Welp, we’re boned,” Rogue quipped. “Woah, we’re having a boss battle already?” Melody asked. “Uh...any way I can try and reason with the dragoon?” Usterlay asked, “I’m new to this and I really don’t wanna die on my first try.” “We could try a persuasion roll,” the Game Master replied. “Hey there, Mr Dragoon, sir,” Usterlay said nervously, “I was wondering if me and my friends could pass through so we could defeat your boss.” The Game Master rolled the twenty-sided die, which came up as a six. “None shall pass!” the Dragoon bellowed. “Pretty please,” Usterlay pleaded. Another persuasion roll was cast, this time coming up as a ten. “None shall pass!” the Dragoon reiterated. “Wait a minute,” Furnus said, “Did Luste-I mean Usterlay have two turns? Pretty sure we’re meant to have one each before the enemy has a turn.” “Enough talking,” Putia stated, “More fighting. I charge at Dragoon with axe.” The Game Master rolled a 20. Putia charged at the Dragoon with enough force to cleave one of the Dragoon’s arms off, in addition to costing the Dragoon 25HP. Impressive for the level 1 barbarian. “Tis but a scratch,” the Dragoon boasted. “A scratch?!” Usterlay exclaimed, “Your arm has been cut off!” “No it isn’t,” the Dragoon said in denial. Usterlay pointed at the dismembered arm bone, “Then what’s this?” The Dragoon shrugged, “I’ve had worse.” “I call upon the spirits of my draconic ancestors and summon a Meteor Swarm to rain fury upon this eldritch foe!” Furnus bellowed. The Game Master rolled a 17, which was enough for the level 10 sorcerer’s spell to work. A shower of meteors crashed down upon the undead dragon with so much force that it dislodged his other arm, in addition to taking away 108HP from the eldritch foe. “It’s just a marrow wound,” the Dragoon wheezed out. Melody hummed an enigmatic tune as she summoned the forces of nature to entangle the draconic revenant. “What are you doing?” Rogue asked. “I call upon the Wrath of Nature to tear this foe to pieces,” Melody replied. After a roll of 16, the Dragon Dragoon was entangled in many vines that ripped its armour clean off, with the Dragoon losing 97HP and now becoming more vulnerable to the party’s attacks. Oh, and one of its legs was torn off too. “Right!” the Dragoon shouted angrily, “I’ll do you for that!” “What are you gonna do?” Rogue asked sardonically, “Bleed on us?” “I’m invincible!” the Dragoon boasted in its delirious state. The Dragoon picked up its jousting spear with its mouth and hopped at Rogue. “I’m just gonna dodge that,” Rogue said matter-of-factly. After a quick roll of the dice, which landed on 15, Rogue swiftly dodged the Dragoon’s attack. “And they said Dexterity was for wimps,” Rogue said coolly. The pressure the Dragoon put upon itself caused it to collapse into a pile of bones. But it was far from finished. “Alright,” the Dragoon said, “We’ll call it a draw.” “Wouldn’t hurt for me to just whack it with my staff,” Usterlay said. A paltry roll of 10 later, Usterlay gave what remained of the dragon a slight tap, causing it to collapse into dust. “1000XP for all!” the Game Master announced. “Yay, that means I levelled up,” Usterlay said happily. “Me too,” Putia said, “Is nice.” “You may have defeated my Skeletal Dragon Dragoon, BUT YOU WILL NEVER DEFEAT ME!!!” the Father of Monsters yelled before disappearing into a puff of smoke. From the sky, an alicorn with the pearl-iest coat a pony could ever possess and a long, illustrious mane like honey descended from the sky in an elegant fashion. "Ah, yes," the princess spoke, "I was hoping a group of friends like yourself would fight the Father of Monsters and his army from the mystic realm of Tambelon for me. Despite my all-powerful nature, I'm afraid I do not have it in me to face them myself." "Real subtle social commentary, GM," Rogue said sarcastically. "Maybe the princess is worried that she lives in a world of cardboard," Usterlay retorted, "Metaphorically speaking." "I know the feeling, sister," Melody said casually. "Now go," the princess commanded, "Save the world. And get me a cup of coffee." Usterlay curtsied, "Right away, your majesty." Author's Note Just so you guys don't lose track of who's who: Luster Dawn/Usterlay Class: Mage Level: 2 HP: 14 STR: 10 DEX: 14 CON: 12 INT: 10 WIS: 24 CHA: 14 Sasha/Putia Class: Barbarian Level: 2 HP: 14 STR: 15 DEX: 12 CON: 11 INT: 7 WIS: 15 CHA: 10 River Song/Melody Class: Druid Level: 5 HP: 20 STR: 18 DEX: 27 CON: 19 INT: 19 WIS: 60 CHA: 25 Novus Flare/Furnus Class: Sorcerer Level: 10 HP: 70 STR: 21 DEX: 17 CON: 14 INT: 20 WIS: 120 CHA: 16 Griselda/Rogue Class: Rogue Level: 30 HP: 210 STR: 90 DEX: 140 CON: 124 INT: 100 WIS: 1224 CHA: 140
Chapter 1 - Meet the PartyIt was a fine summer’s evening as Luster Dawn and the incognito Flurry Heart made their way to the Ponyville Theatre, where they would meet up with the rest of Luster’s friends to engage in a battle against the forces of darkness. The theatre was closed for the day and it was Griselda’s idea to have their O&O session there so they won’t be disturbed. And so they could be as loud and over-the-top as they want when they’re in character. “Are you sure your friends won’t get all excited when they see me?” Flurry asked. “They seem like level-headed guys and girls,” Luster replied, “I don’t think they’d be that excited.” They entered the theatre and, in the centre of the stage, sat a dark-feathered griffon, an Earth pony with a spiky orange mane, a yak and a kirin. They were positioned in a circle around the O&O board. “Who’s the pony in the getup?” the griffon asked as she pointed to Flurry Heart. “Promise you guys won’t freak out?” Luster asked her friends. “Lus, I would go up in flames if I freaked out,” the kirin casually replied, “Trust me, I wouldn’t freak out even if I wanted to.” “Glad to hear it,” Luster said, “Now let’s give our Game Master a warm welcome.” Flurry Heart took off her trenchcoat and fedora and pulled down the bandana covering her mouth. Surprisingly, there wasn’t even the slightest bit of a reaction from anyone in the vicinity. Except for the orange-maned pony. “Oh my goodness,” the pony squeed excitedly, “We’re having an O&O session with an actual princess! And not just any old princess but Princess Flurry Heart of the Crystal Empire, who fought the nefarious King Lavan when he tried to take the Crystal Heart.” “Actually, it was the A.M.C that took the Crystal Heart,” Flurry corrected the esteemed Earth pony, “But I did fight King Lavan and his army of lava demons later on.” “Ah,” the pony said sheepishly, “My bad.” “Allow me to introduce you to everypony,” Luster said as she pointed at the ginger pony, “This is Novus Flare.” Novus curtsied, “It is a pleasure to meet you, your majesty.” Luster pointed to the griffon, “Griselda.” “S’up,” Griselda greeted Flurry Heart. Luster pointed to the kirin, “River Song.” “No relation to the archeologist that married Doctor Whooves,” River stated. “Doctor Who?” Flurry asked. “He deals with timey-wimey things,” River replied, “I’m surprised you never heard of him.” “Yeah, I don’t leave the Crystal Empire that often,” Flurry said sheepishly, “My parents worry that I might break something.” “So they keep you in a place made out of crystals?” Griselda asked sardonically, “Oh, the irony.” Flurry giggled, “Tell me about it.” “And over here is Sasha,” Luster said as she pointed at the yak, “She’s still learning Ponish.” Sasha nodded. “Now that I have introduced everpony,” Luster said. “And the yak and griffin,” Griselda snarkily butted in. “Let’s play some O&O!” Luster announced excitedly. “Before we start, I’d like to point out there are some costumes in the back,” Novus stated as he pointed at a door, “Can I go get them? It will help everypony here get into character.” “Uh...sure,” Luster replied. “Brilliant!” Novus exclaimed excitedly before dashing into the room. While waiting for Novus to get the costumes, Flurry sat behind the small partition screen near the board while Luster sat near her. “So...anypony else new to this?” Luster asked awkwardly. Everyone in the vicinity shook their heads in response. “I got 5 years worth of XP and Gold on me,” Griselda replied. Flurry turned to Luster, “If you like, I could help you with your character.” “Yeah, that would be a good start,” Luster said nervously. “Class?” Flurry asked. “Uh...what classes are there?” Luster asked. “There are thirteen classes to choose from,” Flurry replied, “You have archer, barbarian, bard, black knight, brawler, cleric, druid, enchanter or enchantress, mage, monk, paladin, rogue and sorcerer.” Luster shrugged, “Well, I already know magic. I think I’m gonna be a mage.” “Good choice,” Flurry said, “And just between the two of us, my first character was a mage as well.” Luster chuckled, “Great minds think alike.” “Indeed they do, now what’s your character’s name?” Flurry asked. “What do you think would be a good name for a mage?” Luster asked. “I know from experience that Merry Do is an embarrassing name to give a character,” Flurry replied before giggling, “How about something like Usterlay?” “Usterlay the Mage,” Luster said, “I like it.” Novus trotted back to the group carrying a great big pile of costumes in his hooves. “A hooded cloak and plastic dagger for our dashing rogue,” Novus said as he passed the dagger and cloak to Griselda. “Thanks,” Griselda said. “A fur coat and wooden staff for our druid,” Novus said as he passed the coat and staff to River. “Nice,” River said. “A horned helmet and an axe for our barbarian,” Novus said as he passed the helmet and axe to Sasha. Sasha smiled at her choice of clothing. “And a fire-proof tunic for your friendly neighbourhood sorcerer,” Novus said as he put on the tunic. “Right, because a guy that practices pyromancy would be friendly,” Griselda deadpanned. River cleared her throat. “No offence, River,” Griselda said. “None taken,” River said back. “So, what’s our new member of the group gonna be?” Novus asked Luster. “A mage,” Luster replied. “Perfect!” Novus said excitedly, “We always need more magic types in this little band of ours. Here’s a wizard hat and a golden sceptre.” Luster looked at the grey wizard hat, “Do you have any in purple?” “Ah,” Novus replied, “I will have a checksie.” Novus dug into what remained of the costume pile until he fished out a purple wizard hat. Luster inspected the hat to make sure there weren’t any bugs or bunnies in there, “Thank you.” “So, what kind of adventure are we going on?” Novus asked, “A haunted mansion? Saving a princess? Maybe some aggressive negotiations with a group of bandits.” “I’m thinking more along the lines of a classic,” Flurry replied. Author's Note For the record, none of the names of Luster's friends (apart from Griselda) are official. Novus and Sasha are ones that I made based on their appearance and River Song is a name I read somewhere while traversing the MLP wiki. Not entirely sure who originally coined that name. Oh, and any resemblance to Twilight's friends (personality-wise) is entirely coincidental. Trust me, I do not intend on Luster and her friends to be next in line to wield the Elements of Harmony. The current element bearers are the Young Six. Though that isn't to say they won't save the world at some point in the future. Or at least Luster and Flurry.
Chapter 3 - The Taunting Prench“Wait!” Usterlay exclaimed, “I forgot to ask the princess to be more specific!” The GM laughed, “Not the first time, am I right?” After realizing her error, Usterlay galloped back to the princess before she could fly away. “Can I help you?” the princess asked, “Within reason because I will not accept any offers to join your party.” “You said we should save the world but we have no idea what to do,” Usterlay replied, “Apart from a fetch quest involving your latte, your majesty.” The princess chuckled, “To be fair, it was my fault for not telling you where the Bewitching Bell is. It is the source of the Father of Monsters’ power and is hidden away in a secret location that can only be found when all pieces of the map leading to this location are glued together. The first piece can be found in a tower guarded by soldiers with outrageous Prench accents.” Rogue facepalmed, “Mon dieu.” “The second piece can be found within the concubines of Castle Clop,” the princess exposited. “Don’t you mean ‘confines’?” Usterlay asked. “Nope, I meant concubines,” the princess bluntly replied, “The third piece can be found in a cave guarded by one ferocious lagomorph while the fourth piece can be found in Castle AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!” “Boy, am I glad I decided to have the O&O session here,” Rogue said as she cleaned out her ears, “Any louder and somepony would think we’re torturing the princess.” “Now go,” the princess commanded, “And don’t forget my latte.” And so the brave adventurers didn’t waste any time and galloped, or flew in the case of Rogue, away to the tower guarded by the Prenchponies. “No charging in like last time, Furnus,” Rogue said to her pyromaniacal companion, “I don’t wanna ‘nother repeat of last time.” “Cross my heart and hope to fly,” Furnus replied, “Stick a cupcake in my eye.” “What happened last time?” Usterlay asked. “Let’s just say everypony’s favourite hot-headed sorcerer decided to charge into an ogre-filled settlement while letting out the war cry of ‘Leeeroy Jeeenkins’, Rogue replied before shaking her head, “That poor cleric.” Usterlay titled her head, “Who’s Leroy Jenkins?” Furnus shrugged, “It’s just something I heard Sunset Shimmer say when I saw her and Princess Twilight teaming up to battle some ancient Tartarus escapee.” Rogue looked at Furnus funny, “What do you mean you saw?” “I fell through a crack in the space-time continuum and witnessed the battle first-hoof,” Furnus replied, “It happens.” Rogue shrugged, “Fair enough.” The adventurers finally arrived at the 40ft tall stone tower surrounded by dozens of Prench guards. From the very top of the tower, one of the guards popped his head out of the window. “Bonjour,” the guard said. “I’ll do the talking here,” Rogue said as she takes the initiative. “Who is it?” the guard asked. “I’m Rogue and these are my buddies,” Rogue replied as she pointed to her fellow party members, “Any chance you can tell your boss to give us the map piece?” After a surprisingly abysmal persuasion roll of 4, the Prench guard shook his head. “Aw, you gotta be kidding me,” Rogue said despondently. “Go and boil your bottoms, children of silly people!” the Prench guard taunted uproariously, “I blow my nose at your so-called princess! I fart in your general direction! Your father was a hamster and your mother smelt of elderberries!” “Yikes,” Melody muttered while snickering, “That’s the rudest Prench pony I have ever seen.” Then suddenly, out of nowhere, a very girthy cow was flung at the brave adventurers. “Sweet mother of the princess!” Furnus exclaimed. “I cast a force field,” Usterlay announced. “You need to be a level 6 to do that,” the GM pointed out. “Oh, right,” Usterlay said sheepishly, “Then I just run for my life.” “I shoot a fireball at the oncoming cow,” Furnus announced as he threw a fireball from his bare hooves. With a particularly lucky roll of 18, the fireball hit the cow and the cow exploded into a mushroom cloud of methane. “I can smell it already,” Melody said as she put her hooves to her nose. “Me too,” the GM said as she did the same, “Alright, who guffed?” As everypony began covering their noses, they turned towards Furnus. “Uh...whoever smelt it dealt it?” Furnus said sheepishly. “Whoever denied it supplied it,” Rogue nasally stated as she pinched her beak. “I know this is meant to be immersive but I don’t think it’s meant to be that immersive,” Usterlay said before gagging. “Good thing River Song has a good temper or we’ll all be blown to Tartarus,” Rogue said before chuckling. “Thanks,” Melody said. Author's Note In defence for whi this chapter is short, I had a very busy week and I' currently wasted. BTW, I was listening to this while uploading the chapter: Very fitting giving the hijinks the party in involved in. Oh, and a quick reminder of who's who and how they are doing: Just so you guys don't lose track of who's who: Luster Dawn/Usterlay Class: Mage Level: 2 HP: 14 STR: 10 DEX: 14 CON: 12 INT: 10 WIS: 24 CHA: 14 Sasha/Putia Class: Barbarian Level: 2 HP: 14 STR: 15 DEX: 12 CON: 11 INT: 7 WIS: 15 CHA: 10 River Song/Melody Class: Druid Level: 5 HP: 20 STR: 18 DEX: 27 CON: 19 INT: 19 WIS: 60 CHA: 25 Novus Flare/Furnus Class: Sorcerer Level: 10 HP: 70 STR: 21 DEX: 17 CON: 14 INT: 20 WIS: 120 CHA: 16 Griselda/Rogue Class: Rogue Level: 30 HP: 210 STR: 90 DEX: 140 CON: 124 INT: 100 WIS: 1224 CHA: 140 Oh, and Furnus gets 10XP for blowing up that cow.
Chapter 4 - The Adorable AbominationsAfter the disastrous negotiations with the Prench, the brave adventurers wandered into the woods so they could get some wood for their Trojan Pony. “I know what I’d like some wood for,” Rogue said with a sly smirk. “Hey,” Usterlay said, “Keep it foal-friendly, will you?” “Dude, we’re going to be travelling to a place called Castle Clop after we’ve gotten the map piece from the Prench,” Rogue pointed out, “And since the GM said the other map piece is inside one of the concubines of that castle, something tells me this campaign’s going to get less foal-friendly very quickly.” Usterlay gave the GM a concerned look. “I promise I won’t do anything too graphic,” the GM said, “For all we know, the other map piece might be tucked up one of their dresses.” “Or maybe in their super-flammable panty drawers!” Furnus announced. Rogue glared at Furnus, “If one of the drawers contained the map piece and you burnt it to a crisp, I will never forgive you.” The adventurers suddenly paused in their path, for a giant three-headed Beagle blocked their path. “Aw, I love beagles!” River cooed. “Halt!” the Beagle barked, “Who art thou?” Rogue groaned, “Are we really gonna do this song and dance again?” “Yes,” the GM replied, “Just because you like to think of yourself as the most awesome O&O player to have ever graced Equestria doesn’t mean everypony knows who you are.” “Fine,” Rogue said in an annoyed manner, “I’m Rogue and these are my partners in crime. Except replace “crime” with saving the world.” “What do you want?” the Beagle barked. “I just said we’re here to save the world,” Rogue irately replied, “Now are you gonna move or am I gonna kick your butt?”. After another abysmal persuasion roll, the three-headed Beagle refused to give in to Rogue threat. “Really? Another one?” Rogue asked before glaring at the GM, “I swear you’re doing this on purpose.” The GM flashed Rogue a cheeky smirk of her own, “What gives you that idea?” “I’m afraid I can’ let you past,” the three-headed Beagle stated. Rogue cracked her knuckles, “In that case, it’s butt-kicking time. Boys and girls, you know what to do.” “If you’re going to fight us,” one of the Beagle heads said, “Then we’ll have no choice but to kill you.” “Have we?” another Beagle head asked the one next to him. “I don’t think so,” the third head replied. “Well, what do I think?” the other Beagle head asked. “I think kill him,” the first Beagle head replied. “Let’s be nice to each other,” the third Beagle head said. “Oh, shut up!” the first Beagle head shouted, “I want to bite their heads off!” “Oh, bite your own head off,” the third Beagle told the first, “You’ll do us all a favour.” “You’re lucky,” the second head said to the third, “You’re not next to him.” “What do you mean?” the first asked. “You snore!” the second one replied. “No, I don’t!” the first head snapped, “And you got bad breath!” The party just stared at the arguing three-headed Beagle. “If nopony minds,” Furnus said quietly, “I’m gonna turn him into a parsnip.” “You’re not going to use a fire spell on him,” Rogue said with mild surprise, “It’s a miracle.” “Even if it’s trying to kill us, why would I burn a cute little thing like that?!” Furnus exclaimed, “So I cast the Transform into Root Vegetable Spell! And kinda hope Melody has something that can turn the Beagle back into a Beagle as soon as we are done.” After a roll of 15, the three-headed Beagle’s legs shrunk and then all three of his heads shrunk until his body transmogrified into a massive parsnip. Rogue rubbed her belly, “Yum. Now we don’t have to worry about running low on HP any time soon.” Furnus slapped Rogue, “Don’t. Eat. The parsnip.” The brave adventurers lifted the heavy parsnip and carried it with them as they resumed their travels. Despite Furnus’ objections, they would have to eat the parsnip if there were no other options left. As they ventured onwards, they encountered a small pack of bushbabies. “Yay, more cuteness!” Melody squeed excitedly. “We are the tribe who saaaaay…” one of the bushbabies shrilled in a cacophonic manner, “Squee!” The party members flinched at the bushbaby’s utterance of the word “Squee”. “Oh no, not the tribe that says ‘Squee’,” Rogue said sarcastically. “The very same!” the bushbaby exclaimed, oblivious to Rogue’s sarcasm, “We are the keepers of the sacred words, and we demand a sacrifice.” “What is it with cute things trying to kill us today?” Melody asked. “Blame our sadistic game master,” Rogue replied as she pointed to the GM. “We did not say we wanted to sacrifice you!” the lead bushbaby spoke, “But we shall say ‘Squee’ to you again until you appease us.” “What do you want?” Usterlay asked. “We demand...a shrubbery!” the lead bushbaby replied. “A what?” Furnus asked. “It’s a thing with a load of shrubs,” Melody replied. “And what are shrubs?” Furnus asked. “They’re like bushes but smaller and more round,” Melody replied. “You must return here with a shrubbery!” the lead bushbaby demanded, “Or you will never pass through these woods alive! Oh, and make sure it’s a nice one! And not too expensive either! Now…..Go!” The adventurers turned around and made their way to the nearest town, hoping there would be a stall that sold shrubberies. And if there wasn’t, they could always find a stall that sold shrub seeds and have Melody use her druid magic to grow a shrubbery before the bushbabies’ very disproportionately large eyes. Author's Note Would have made this chapter a bit longer but I literally only wrote it today. Luster Dawn/Usterlay Class: Mage Level: 2 HP: 14 STR: 10 DEX: 14 CON: 12 INT: 10 WIS: 24 CHA: 14 Sasha/Putia Class: Barbarian Level: 2 HP: 14 STR: 15 DEX: 12 CON: 11 INT: 7 WIS: 15 CHA: 10 River Song/Melody Class: Druid Level: 5 HP: 20 STR: 18 DEX: 27 CON: 19 INT: 19 WIS: 60 CHA: 25 Novus Flare/Furnus Class: Sorcerer Level: 10 HP: 70 STR: 21 DEX: 17 CON: 14 INT: 20 WIS: 120 CHA: 16 Griselda/Rogue Class: Rogue Level: 30 HP: 210 STR: 90 DEX: 140 CON: 124 INT: 100 WIS: 1224 CHA: 140
Chapter 5 - Seriously, Flurry?!After a long trek to the nearest town, the adventurers had spotted a stall that had a massive, conveniently-placed sign next to it saying 'SHRUBBERIES FOR SALE!'. "Gee, I wonder if they sell shrubberies?" Rogue snarkily asked. "Would it kill you to not make a sarcastic comment for five minutes?" Melody asked. "What?" Rogue said defensively, "It's what my character does." Furnus zoomed up to the shopkeeper, "Hi there, do you have any shrubberies?" "None, I'm afraid," the shopkeeper replied, "All my shrubberies were stolen by a terrible beast of unfathomable cruelty." Putia embeds her axe into the stall, "Point us to beast." "Follow me," the shopkeeper said as he walked away from his stall. The adventurers followed the shopkeeper to the far end of the market before making their way into another forest. As they followed the shopkeeper into the forest, they saw that it was littered with the broken bones and mangled armour of deceased adventurers. The wind bellowed as they made their way up a hill after walking out of the forest. "Stop!" the shopkeeper exclaimed before pointing at a cave, "This is where our terrible foe resides." "Keep me covered," Putia said. "With what?" Usterlay asked. "Just keep me covered," Putia reiterated. "Too late!" the shopkeeper announced. From the cave crawled not a foul behemoth but a cute little bunny rabbit. "There it is," the shopkeeper whispered. "Behind rabbit?" Putia asked. "It is the rabbit," the shopkeeper replied. Rogue's eyes widened with horror, "Oh, no." Putia chuckled at her companion's fear, "You encountered rabbit before?" "Yes," Rogue replied, "And let me tell you guys you're not the first party I've joined that ran into this thing. I'm getting out of here." With a lucky roll of 18, Rogue immediately headed for the hills. Putia laughed, "You are most OP member of party! Why are you running from cute bunny?!" "Because I don't want to get eaten by 'cute bunny'!" Rogue replied, "And because I don't want the last five years of my life to go to waste." Putia continued laughing at her companion's cowardice. "I wouldn't laugh if I were you," the shopkeeper warned the barbarian, "That's the foulest, cruellest, bad-tempered lagomorph you will ever see in your life." "Sure, I believe you," Putia said in between chuckles, "I throw axe at cute bunny's head." With a roll of 12, the axe was thrown in the rabbit's direction. But, because Putia is under-levelled, the rabbit gobbled up the axe before it could even touch the rabbit's face. Suddenly, the rabbit lunged at Putia and ate her face off. "Wait, Putia's dead?!" Furnus exclaimed. "Yes," Putia replied despite being dead, "I am dead." "Why is Putia dead?" Furnus asked. "I think it was-" Putia replied before being rudely interrupted by the GM. "Shh!" the GM said, "You are dead." Putia shrugged, "Okay." Melody and Usterlay glared at the GM. "What?" the GM asked. "Stop trying to kill us with cute things!" Melody irately said, "Anyway, I shall use my connection with nature to reason with the rabbit." With a persuasion roll of 15, Melody approached the rabbit and tried to calm it from its murderous rage. Unfortunately, because Melody was also under-levelled, the rabbit gobbled her up as well. Usterlay continued to glare at the GM, You're doing this on purpose, aren't you?" The GM flashed a sly grin, "Maybe." "I told you our GM was sadistic!" Rogue yelled from the distance. "How powerful is this rabbit?" Furnus asked. "About level 200," the GM casually replied, "Why?" Furnus shrugged, "Well, it beats getting killed by falling rocks. And speaking of falling rocks, I cast a Meteor Swarm on this furry fiend." With a roll of 16, a meteor shower rained down upon the killer rabbit. But, because Furnus was under-levelled, it only did 1 HP of damage. Furnus gulped, "Mommy." The rabbit lunged at Furnus and gobbled him up. "I'm gonna do what Rogue did and make a run for it," Usterlay calmly stated. With a roll of 6, Usterlay only managed to gallop away for 5 miles before the rabbit caught up to her and gobbled her up. After the eventful session of O&O, Flurry trotted back to the Crystal Palace. She could have just flown back but it would be difficult to do so when she was wearing a trench coat to conceal her identity. After entering the palace, she hung up her fedora and trenchcoat and trotted upstairs to her room. Or that was what she intended to do were it not for her father making his way down the stairs first. "Hey, Flurry," Shining Armor said, "How did O&O with your friends go?" Flurry sheepishly put her hoof behind her head, "Uh..." Shining Armor frowned, "Did you kill another party with the Killer Rabbit of Care Bear Log?" "Well...not everyone," Flurry replied, "One of them made a run for it. And in my defence, I thought they could do with the extra XP. If they think the killer rabbit is bad, just wait until they encounter Grogar." "If they encounter Grogar," Shining pointed out. Flurry shrugged, "Nothing a resurrection potion or two can't fix. Anyway, do you mind if I stay in Ponyville for a month or two? I made this friend and I think she could use some help with her friendship studies. And who could be more qualified to help than the niece of the Princess of Friendship? Who also happens to be the daughter of the Princess of Love." Shining moved out of the way, "Sure thing, Flurry. A true friend helps a friend in need, after all." "I know," Flurry said as she trotted up the stairs, "I heard the song." "Just try not to kill everyone next time you and your friends play O&O," Shining said as his daughter trotted up the stairs. Flurry chuckled, "I can't make any promises." Author's Note Aaaand no-one's ever gonna want Flurry to be GM ever again. Luster Dawn/Usterlay Class: Mage Level: 2 HP: ~~14~~ 0 STR: 10 DEX: 14 CON: 12 INT: 10 WIS: 24 CHA: 14 Sasha/Putia Class: Barbarian Level: 2 HP: ~~14~~ 0 STR: 15 DEX: 12 CON: 11 INT: 7 WIS: 15 CHA: 10 River Song/Melody Class: Druid Level: 5 HP: ~~20~~ 0 STR: 18 DEX: 27 CON: 19 INT: 19 WIS: 60 CHA: 25 Novus Flare/Furnus Class: Sorcerer Level: 10 HP: ~~70~~ 0 STR: 21 DEX: 17 CON: 14 INT: 20 WIS: 120 CHA: 16 Griselda/Rogue Class: Rogue Level: 30 HP: 210 STR: 90 DEX: 140 CON: 124 INT: 100 WIS: 1224 CHA: 140
Chapter 2 - Enter the Forces of TambelonIt is 2052AA, in the year of the alicorns, eons since the brave heroes of old banished a dark and terrible foe known only as the Father of Monsters. While the echoes of their heroics slowly faded away into legend that soon became myth, life continued on in the peaceful realm of Equus. Until one day, the peaceful town of Horsehorn was invaded by an unnatural force of the living dead and other abominations. And at the reigns of this horrific horde was a demonic ram of unfathomable power that would make even the alicorns that ruled this land quake in their horseshoes. The Father of Monsters has returned. “Mwahahahaha!” the Father of Monsters cackled, “I have returned from my imprisonment to rule this land once again! And any who defy my will shall be destroyed then reforged as a part of my army!” But what this foe didn’t predict was that a group of adventurers have banded together to stop him. “That’s us!” Furnus whispered excitedly. “What?!” the Father of Monsters asked in shock, “Who dares defy my will?!” “Us, duh,” Rogue dryly replied. “Your arrogance blinds you, fools!” the Father of Monsters boasted, “Now it has cost everypony in this village their cutie marks!” The Father of Monsters cast a fiendish curse on the ponies of Horsehorn, in which they were stripped of their cutie marks. Apart from anypony that didn’t get their cutie marks yet, the villagers ran about screaming their lungs out. “I hope you enjoy a life without destiny except to serve ME!” the Father of Monsters bellowed. “Or we could just do our own thing,” Rogue pointed out as she pointed at her butt, “That’s what I did.” “SIIIILENCE!!!” the Father of Monsters shouted. The Father of Monsters conjured a gargantuan portal of darkness and summoned a boney behemoth clad in black armour. It wielded a massive jousting spear long enough to poke somepony’s eye out should they get too close. “As punishment for your insolence,” the Father of Monsters snarled, “I summon the Skeletal Dragon Dragoon to destroy you!” “Welp, we’re boned,” Rogue quipped. “Woah, we’re having a boss battle already?” Melody asked. “Uh...any way I can try and reason with the dragoon?” Usterlay asked, “I’m new to this and I really don’t wanna die on my first try.” “We could try a persuasion roll,” the Game Master replied. “Hey there, Mr Dragoon, sir,” Usterlay said nervously, “I was wondering if me and my friends could pass through so we could defeat your boss.” The Game Master rolled the twenty-sided die, which came up as a six. “None shall pass!” the Dragoon bellowed. “Pretty please,” Usterlay pleaded. Another persuasion roll was cast, this time coming up as a ten. “None shall pass!” the Dragoon reiterated. “Wait a minute,” Furnus said, “Did Luste-I mean Usterlay have two turns? Pretty sure we’re meant to have one each before the enemy has a turn.” “Enough talking,” Putia stated, “More fighting. I charge at Dragoon with axe.” The Game Master rolled a 20. Putia charged at the Dragoon with enough force to cleave one of the Dragoon’s arms off, in addition to costing the Dragoon 25HP. Impressive for the level 1 barbarian. “Tis but a scratch,” the Dragoon boasted. “A scratch?!” Usterlay exclaimed, “Your arm has been cut off!” “No it isn’t,” the Dragoon said in denial. Usterlay pointed at the dismembered arm bone, “Then what’s this?” The Dragoon shrugged, “I’ve had worse.” “I call upon the spirits of my draconic ancestors and summon a Meteor Swarm to rain fury upon this eldritch foe!” Furnus bellowed. The Game Master rolled a 17, which was enough for the level 10 sorcerer’s spell to work. A shower of meteors crashed down upon the undead dragon with so much force that it dislodged his other arm, in addition to taking away 108HP from the eldritch foe. “It’s just a marrow wound,” the Dragoon wheezed out. Melody hummed an enigmatic tune as she summoned the forces of nature to entangle the draconic revenant. “What are you doing?” Rogue asked. “I call upon the Wrath of Nature to tear this foe to pieces,” Melody replied. After a roll of 16, the Dragon Dragoon was entangled in many vines that ripped its armour clean off, with the Dragoon losing 97HP and now becoming more vulnerable to the party’s attacks. Oh, and one of its legs was torn off too. “Right!” the Dragoon shouted angrily, “I’ll do you for that!” “What are you gonna do?” Rogue asked sardonically, “Bleed on us?” “I’m invincible!” the Dragoon boasted in its delirious state. The Dragoon picked up its jousting spear with its mouth and hopped at Rogue. “I’m just gonna dodge that,” Rogue said matter-of-factly. After a quick roll of the dice, which landed on 15, Rogue swiftly dodged the Dragoon’s attack. “And they said Dexterity was for wimps,” Rogue said coolly. The pressure the Dragoon put upon itself caused it to collapse into a pile of bones. But it was far from finished. “Alright,” the Dragoon said, “We’ll call it a draw.” “Wouldn’t hurt for me to just whack it with my staff,” Usterlay said. A paltry roll of 10 later, Usterlay gave what remained of the dragon a slight tap, causing it to collapse into dust. “1000XP for all!” the Game Master announced. “Yay, that means I levelled up,” Usterlay said happily. “Me too,” Putia said, “Is nice.” “You may have defeated my Skeletal Dragon Dragoon, BUT YOU WILL NEVER DEFEAT ME!!!” the Father of Monsters yelled before disappearing into a puff of smoke. From the sky, an alicorn with the pearl-iest coat a pony could ever possess and a long, illustrious mane like honey descended from the sky in an elegant fashion. "Ah, yes," the princess spoke, "I was hoping a group of friends like yourself would fight the Father of Monsters and his army from the mystic realm of Tambelon for me. Despite my all-powerful nature, I'm afraid I do not have it in me to face them myself." "Real subtle social commentary, GM," Rogue said sarcastically. "Maybe the princess is worried that she lives in a world of cardboard," Usterlay retorted, "Metaphorically speaking." "I know the feeling, sister," Melody said casually. "Now go," the princess commanded, "Save the world. And get me a cup of coffee." Usterlay curtsied, "Right away, your majesty." Author's Note Just so you guys don't lose track of who's who: Luster Dawn/Usterlay Class: Mage Level: 2 HP: 14 STR: 10 DEX: 14 CON: 12 INT: 10 WIS: 24 CHA: 14 Sasha/Putia Class: Barbarian Level: 2 HP: 14 STR: 15 DEX: 12 CON: 11 INT: 7 WIS: 15 CHA: 10 River Song/Melody Class: Druid Level: 5 HP: 20 STR: 18 DEX: 27 CON: 19 INT: 19 WIS: 60 CHA: 25 Novus Flare/Furnus Class: Sorcerer Level: 10 HP: 70 STR: 21 DEX: 17 CON: 14 INT: 20 WIS: 120 CHA: 16 Griselda/Rogue Class: Rogue Level: 30 HP: 210 STR: 90 DEX: 140 CON: 124 INT: 100 WIS: 1224 CHA: 140
