The Gentleman's Path

is the nineteenth episode of the second campaign of Critical Role. The Mighty Nein find themselves facing multiple choices as to their next actions and alliances...

Announcements

 * Mordenkainen’s Tome of Foes releases tomorrow on DnD Beyond.
 * The second sponsor is Backblaze, and Sam has captured one of their head fairies, Yev, in a bag. Yev dies during the spot but is brought back to life by critters visiting the Backblaze site.
 * Vox Machina: Origins hardcover will be on sale next week on 5/31.
 * The Stream of Many Eyes starts June 1st. Ashley, Matt, Marisha, Sam, Travis, and Taliesin will all be taking part.
 * Talks Machina is every Tuesday.
 * If you have Amazon Prime, you have Twitch Prime and can subscribe for free.
 * The Critical Role Live and Vox Machina dice sets are currently back in stock and in the store.
 * Matt will be at Otafest in Calgary tomorrow.

Previously on ''Critical Role
''Last we left off: the Mighty Nein have been caught up in the political turmoil of the Empire, noticing that the king has declared war on the eastern realm of Xhorhas, specifically the Kryn Dynasty. There was an assault on one of the garrisons in the east. There were many lives lost and the sky now darkens. [The Mighty Nein has] begun to decide what it is you can do and what your current plan of action is. As you began to gather your things as you decide where your next trajectory would be, you were summoned to the King's Hall, and brought before the Lawmaster of the town of Zadash.

''She implored you if you're interested, having proven your mettle in the past and in the Victory Pit not too long ago, if you'd be interested as signing off as legionnaires to help aid, protect, and do work for the Empire at home while all the military forces of the Righteous Brand had moved to the east to engage with the enemy. You took it under consideration and left, went back to gather some more supplies at your inn. You were delivered a missive from an old friend, Kara, saying that The Gentleman would like to speak with you. That was where we left off. Mighty Nein, having just returned to the Leaky Tap, being briefly met with Kara who delivered this information and then vanished back into the afternoon, what would you like to do?''

Part I
The Mighty Nein head over to the Evening Nip at The Gentleman's request, where a fight between Louis and Thed is in full progress. Inspired, Jester challenges Beau to fight. Caleb casts Haste on Beau, to Jester's ire. They go at it full force, and Beau eventually knocks Jester unconscious, but she's roused by a bar patron throwing water in her face.

The Gentleman calls them over and shares that the breach of the Ashguard Garrison was a massacre, and the skies there now hang dark with ill-magic. He's not interested in politics, but sees opportunities for gain. He offers them two jobs. The first is to reconnect with an old friend named Ophelia Mardoon 350 miles northwest on the outskirts of Shadycreek Run, who has requested his aid in stabilizing her situation. It pays 500 gp down and 4500 upon returning with Ophelia within the month. The second potential job is to check out his former safe house and storage facility in the Labenda Swamp to see why it's recently gone dark, getting more information from the Keystone Pub in the Puddles in Berleben. It pays 250 gp down and 1750 on completion. The party accepts both, and gets the advances, two greater healing potions, and one vial of cure disease. The Gentleman recommends taking the Bromkiln Byway the 70 miles to Berleben.

Caleb and Beau head to the Invulnerable Vagrant, where Caleb gets 30 gp worth of incense and 100 gp of paper and ink, and Beau drools over (but can't afford) some enchanted bracers. On the way back, Caleb tells her he cast Haste on her in the fight, saying, "You scratch my back, I will scratch yours."

The party heads out of town with their cart and six horses. Caleb sends Frumpkin over to Yasha, who has never seen a cat before, and they bond. Night falls shortly afterward, and they stop, build a fire, and take watches. Beau and Yasha, on watch together, talk about Xhorhas. Yasha says she grew up there but it's not a pleasant place. In the morning on the road again, Jester asks Nott about goblin life, and Nott says it was terrible, that goblins are awful, terrible creatures who steal and eat children. She denies she's ever eaten a child herself, though.

Around midday, they pass a small shack a ways off the road. Molly, Fjord, and Yasha (wearing Frumpkin) go to investigate. It is inhabited by an inhospitable orc, who perks up when they offer to trade. Molly buys some hide armor and two pounds of salted dried mystery meat for 16 gp. At nightfall they camp in a small grove of trees and build a fire for warmth. Yasha collects some flowers to press in her book. Nott and Caleb take second watch, and a poison arrow comes out of the darkness, hitting Caleb. They see two or three strange wolves emerge along with two heavy forms apparently named Emmett and Gonah.

Break

 * Back Blaze commercial
 * International Tabletop Day 2018 reel
 * Key Question Deadpool clip

Part II
Out of the forest slink eight goblins, a cluster of wolves, and two large ogres. The goblins' arrows poison Yasha as well as Caleb, and the ogres deal significant damage. Nott yells to Caleb, "Modern Literature!" She runs over to some goblins, points her crossbow at Caleb and fires, aiming for the book strapped under his armpit hidden under his clothes. With a natural 20, her aim is true, and Caleb goes down like a sack of potatoes, playing dead. Nott says in Goblin, "I'll hold them off. You get the loot with the horses!" but they're unconvinced. Jester, thinking Nott has turned on them with the rest of the goblins and shot down Caleb, frantically runs over and casts Cure Wounds on Caleb, healing him 20 points, but he pretends it had no effect and continues playing dead. Jester drags him away. Yasha, furious, uses Necrotic Shroud and two large, skeletal black wings emerge from her shoulder blades, the tips of her hair turn black, and her eyes go jet black. Two wolves attack Jester, still trying to pull Caleb out of danger. Nott continues to pretend she's on the goblins' side and that her hits on the ogre are misses against the party. Yasha takes out one of the ogres, and the party whittles away at the goblins and wolves, when the remaining goblins flee. Fjord polishes off the second ogre, Molly kills the last wolf, and Caleb gets the last goblin as it is rifling through their supplies on the cart.

The party ask Yasha about her wings, and she says it just happens when she's startled and angry. Jester asks if she's an angel, and she says again that it just happens and that she's the only one in her family who had this thing. She can't use them to fly; she's tried. In Celestial, Caleb asks again if she's an angel, and she responds, "Well, of sorts, I guess." He tells her, in Celestial, she's going to have to explain a bit, either now or later, but Yasha wants to do it later. The party searches the bodies and Nott finds five vials of toxin.

The group asks Nott if she's okay after fighting other goblins. She explains that she hasn't felt comfortable in her skin as long as she can remember. She shouldn't be one; she should be in a different body. She doesn't hate herself, but she doesn't like how she feels when she sees her hands or feet. She wants to be different. Her job with the clan was the torturer's assistant, and one time she became friends with a halfling captured from a nearby village. He was a chemist and taught her about alchemy. They ran away in different directions when she created a distraction for his escape. She hopes he got away; she's been running ever since.

Alone together, Caleb tells Nott that if she ever wants to talk about her past, the door is always open. She confesses that she tasted a baby once, in a goulashy thing with a lot of other meats, and found out later what was in it. Caleb responds, "Who am I to judge?" They fall asleep in the mud and rain, resuming their journey toward the Labenda Swamp in the cold, damp morning.

The Mighty Nein

 * Beauregard
 * Fjord
 * Frumpkin
 * Jester Lavorre
 * Nott
 * Yasha Nydoorin
 * Mollymauk Tealeaf
 * Caleb Widogast

New

 * Emmett
 * Gonah

Returning

 * Clive Bens
 * Dweez
 * The Gentleman
 * Kutha
 * Louis
 * Pumat Sol
 * Sorah
 * Thed

Mentioned

 * Kara
 * Febron Keyes
 * Ophelia Mardoon

Quotations
Jester: Well, my mom used to tell me that if you act up too much, the goblins will come in the middle of the night and steal you away. Nott: All right, so that's true. But it doesn't really matter if you're good or bad; we will come and steal you if you are a child, anyway. Jester: And would you eat them? Because my mom said you would eat them! Nott: Take it easy. We would share with the rest of the clan. But of course we would eat children. ... Goblins are terrible, terrible creatures.
 * Nott: Everything you've heard about goblins is true. They're awful in every way.

Caleb: (reluctantly) Yeah. Fjord: I want to check out the shack. Caleb: All right. For you, Fjord, I will make Frumpkin a bird. Jester: Not for me, though. Caleb hates me. Caleb: You are more sensitive than I would have imagined. Jester: I want people to like me.
 * Jester: Can Frumpkin be a bird?

Yasha: I reply back in Celestial. "Well, of sorts, I guess."
 * Caleb: Caleb, in Celestial says: "No, but really, are you an angel?"


 * Nott: Well, I know that I'm a goblin. For as long as I've been alive, I haven't felt comfortable in my skin for as long as I can remember. I just feel like I shouldn't be-- I don't fit in with them. It's not just that. This feels wrong, like I should be in a different body. The way they act, and the way they are. It's just not me. They do horrible things to people, and they seem fine with it, but I don't know. I never felt the same as them. It's not that I don't like myself or anything; I think I'm okay. But I just don't like how I feel when I see my hands or my feet. They just feel wrong. I want to be different.

Beau: Nott the Brave. Jester: Maybe there is a comma. Fjord and Beau: You earned your comma. Nott: Let's just call it a hyphen for now. And maybe we'll move to an ellipses or something. Nott: Thank you, Caleb. I tasted a baby once, just once. I didn't know, they were handing around a bowl. I didn't know what was in it, and then later somebody said there was like-- I mean, they put a bunch of different meat in there. How was I supposed to know that it was like a goulashy thing? Caleb: Who am I to judge?
 * Fjord: Knowing all that, you showed a lot of bravery tonight.
 * Caleb: You know, I never talked about my past for obvious reasons, and I didn't want questions pointed back at me. Still no pressure on you, but if you ever want to talk more about it, the door is always open for you, Nott. When you are ready.

Trivia

 * When she met Caleb in jail, Nott had been arrested for stealing cherry wine.