The Stowaway

is the forty-fifth episode of the second campaign of Critical Role. The Mighty Nein find a stowaway on the Squall-Eater, who carries a mysterious item that holds dangerous consequences for the curious...

Pre-Show
We should just have a sound cue for Travis at this point. It's expected at this point: it's Critical Role's *bwa-bwa-bwa-bwaaaaa*.

Announcements

 * First and foremost, we have two fantastic sponsors tonight:
 * Our fantastic friends from D&D Beyond return! D&D Beyond has been with Critical Role all campaign and all year-long. To thank D&D Beyond for such a wonderful 2018, Sam is giving them a gift: an ad that will hopefully live forever. He is calling it his "Christmas GIF"...that's right: "GIF", not "gift". (Sam tries to make a "G" and a "F" with his hand, but it's just two Cs.) Sam doesn't know how to make a GIF, but Critters do. So the crew will bring out a green screen, and the cast will do some acting and reactions in front of it, and you can add your own backgrounds to make memorable GIFs! That way, when you are online searching through the Twitters, the Reddits, the "Immagurrs" (Imugrs...Sam's an old man), and the Giphys, you might see one of these bad boys and give some love to D&D Beyond. Sam starts by doing his version of the "guy who blinks like, 'That's weird'". Taliesin does an applause GIF. Sam directs Laura to do a fail GIF where she rolls a dice but the result sucked, but Laura realizes what he's trying to get her to do, and it turns into a "I'm-so-angry-I-gonna-punch-you" GIF. Matt does a "this" GIF. And last but not least, Sam tries to do a success GIF, but then Travis suggests "dramatic prairie dog" instead.
 * Speaking of fantastic partners through this campaign, we have our returning friends from The Rook & The Raven! They have been with Critical Role before, and they are creators of handcrafted, high-quality, disc-bound notebooks for your campaign notes and character notes. Marisha has the "Mischief & Misadventure" book. For the month of December, The Rook & The Raven is donating 100% of their profits to schools, teachers, and community centers for them to grow gaming clubs and RPG classes through their "adventure club gaming kits". They're putting everything together to make sure that these schools and facilities have the necessary materials to help facilitate these clubs and get these kids to build the same strong bonds that Matt did in his school's D&D club. Give the gift of gaming now by supporting their work (and thus, supporting these kids) at therookandtheraven.com/criticalrole. Travis thinks that's so cool. Matt thinks it's badass! Matt loves seeing messages online from gaming clubs that there are TOO MANY kids playing: YAY! It's such a surreal reality: Matt loves it!
 * Critical Role has a fantastic art show coming up soon. You all got a chance to see "The Chronicles of Exandria: Vol. II": the final volume of the art for Vox Machina's campaign. Now Critical Role gets to announce that they are having their very first art gallery to celebrate the fantastic art community that has come out of Critical Role. Each piece was created by community artists and curated by the cast. Tickets for the opening reception will available Monday, December 17, 2018. Tickets are completely free and are just for the reception on Friday, January 18, 2019: you don't need tickets for the rest of the weekend, as the gallery will be open through Sunday, January 20, 2019. It's going to be at Gallery Nucleus in Alhambra, CA, and you can find all the information for that at critrole.com.
 * Also announced for that same weekend, on Saturday, January 19, 2019, Critical Role is returning to the first campaign with a Vox Machina one-shot. It's going to be "The Search for Grog". No spoilers, but towards the very, very, very end of the campaign, something happened: one of our players pulled the thing from a Deck of Thingy Things (Travis moans, "I'M SORRY!") and briefly derailed the entire thing. They had just glossed over it, but they are actually going to play through that adventure as a one-shot with all returning members of Vox Machina but two, because Grog is being sought after and another character will not be present. VIP tickets go on sale this Saturday, December 15, 2018, and General Admission goes on sale Sunday, December 16, 2018. VIP attendees get a special swag bag (including a Vox Machina print signed by the whole cast), as well as a special Q&A before the show, moderated by Brian Wayne Foster.
 * Be sure to join us next week for our very special holiday one-shot that is being DMed by our fantastic Liam O'Brien. Liam is so excited: he's had this idea in his head for TWO YEARS! He was going to do this last December, but they ended up doing the Level 20 Battle Royale instead. But now it's HERE, and he's mostly ready! Matt was not expecting that much exuberance out of Liam. Matt is pumped now just from that: that was adorable! It's gonna be so much fun, and it's going to be called "The Night Before Critmas"! It will air on Friday, December 21, 2018 at 7:00 pm PST at twitch.tv/criticalrole.
 * Last but not least, Critical Role will be having its very special end-of-the-year "State of the Role" tomorrow on Friday, December 14, 2018. It will give more insight to Critical Role's holiday programming schedule and reveal a few fun things that Critical Role has coming in 2019.
 * Whatever Laura said before they came back from the intro, Matt says it was "adorable".

Previously on Critical Role
The Mighty Nein, after spending an exorbitant amount of time at sea at the behest of Captain Avantika, on the ship the Squall Eater'', got pulled into piracy under the banner of The Revelry, brought to the pirate city and island of Darktow amongst the Dragshallow Reefs. There you uncovered information, proof, that she had plans to overthrow the Plank King and rule the seas, along with her fanatical obsession with Uk'otoa. You managed to dodge through the night, grab the necessary journal, uncover the information through the cipher, and through a scuffle survive this fiery battle on the docks from the ship. And through some tactical use of spells and quick members of your party you got it in the hands of the Plank King.''

''Judgement was brought between the two of you at the dock, and he chose Avantika to go. Upon... having her make her leave, violently, gave you guys your reward, which was sparing your lives and telling you to get the fuck out of Darktow and never come back. You were gifted the kinda hobbled, burned form of the Squall Eater and let to make your way out towards the ocean, where you attempted to search into the backstory of Fjord's relationship with his patron, in search of one of these, and what seems to be the third and final sphere. You made your way down into the wreckage of his ship, the Tide's Breath, and discovered it was one of many in what was called the Diver's Grave: a ship graveyard here in the center of the Lucidian Ocean. ''

''In trying to find out where this orb went you were drawn into the underwater lair of Dashilla the Dreadful. You encountered spirits of long dead sailors bound there by her magic. You discovered the essence of how she's able to maintain this graveyard and draw ships down below. And while she managed to flee before being killed you grabbed what you were looking for, fled to the surface, and with your ship escaped the growing storm before any more danger was brought to you. And that's where we left off. ''

''So, Mighty Nein, as you've all gathered your things you can hear the distant crack of thunder as the storm gets smaller and smaller behind you on the horizon. What do you want to do?''

Twiggy & Trixie
Fjord instructed Orly Skiffback to plot a course for Bisaft. The Squall Eater still needs repairs from the battle with Avantika and her crew on Darktow Isle. During the first day of about three days travel, Nott tried to make more explosive bolts. She successfully made two, but the third one exploded.

In the light of the explosion, Nott saw a shape moving through the galley. The rest of the Mighty Nein heard the explosion and started to run belowdecks. Nott came up and told them there was no need. She explained the soot on her face by saying Avantika had set a booby trap. Nott said in Halfling (which none of the Mighty Nein except Beau understand) that there was someone downstairs. The others were confused by the different language. When Fjord asked what they were talking about, Beau told him rudely it was none of his business. Nott gave up trying to be sneaky and told the whole group about the shape.

Fjord sent Beau, Jester and Nott to find out what the shape was. The others would wait on deck in case whoever it was got past them and tried to escape. Jester speculated it might be Vera. The last they saw of Vera, she was very badly burned by the Fireball Caleb cast at the Squall Eater; but they were not sure if she was dead or not. They did not see Vera brought to Avantika's trial either. Before going belowdecks, Beau apologized to Fjord for being rude then ran before he could respond.

Jester saw the shape and heard footsteps go from the galley to the cargo hold. Beau, Jester, and Nott followed quietly and saw the shape duck behind some boxes. Jester sent her illusory duplicate towards the boxes and cast Thaumaturgy to amplify her voice saying "There are ghosts on the ship!". The three flanked the box to see a tiny gnome girl with chocolate smeared all over her face curled up in the corner. At the mention of ghosts, she excitedly told them she is scared of ghosts. Jester immediately liked her and offered her candy. Nott pointed her crossbow at the gnome, who then created an illusion of a hand coming out of her hand and wagging a finger at Nott. After this Nott was also won over by the new arrival, who introduced herself as Twiggy and pointed to something in her pocket called "Trixie".

Jester asked what Trixie looks like. Twiggy opened her pocket to reveal a tiny squirrel. Jester excitedly brought out Sprinkle to meet Trixie. Beau was still suspicious and asked Twiggy to explain why she was on the ship. Twiggy told them hid inside a box that got loaded on the Squall Eater. She was looking for a place to hide because she stole something to keep a "really bad guy" from getting it. Twiggy pulled several trinkets and drawings she's made from her backpack until she finds a large (for a gnome) brass and golden sphere. The sphere has multiple layers of rotating bands and sliding puzzle pieces. Jester noticed that parts of the sphere Twiggy was not touching were moving on their own. It seems to be a combination of clockwork and magic.

Twiggy showed off a way she's found to spin pieces of the artifact that causes gold coins to fall out of it. Jester showed Twiggy the dodecahedron and invited her to look at it. Twiggy felt herself get drawn into it. Her surroundings faded. She saw herself surrounded by stars and little ghost versions of herself. A glowing warm light appeared in front of Twiggy, who reached out and touched it. She felt warm, closed her eyes, and opened her eyes to find herself back on the Squall Eater. Nott said they should go upstairs and show Twiggy's artifact to Caleb because he is much smarter than any of them.

Beauregard lied to Twiggy that receiving a Fragment of Possibility from the dodecahedron means that she is now bonded to the Mighty Nein. Twiggy wasn't concerned by the threat and responded happily that she likes hanging out with people and trusting people. Passing by a very confused Marius LePual, Beau, Jester, and Nott take Twiggy to the deck to meet the rest of the Mighty Nein. Twiggy emerged on to the deck of the Squall Eater dancing.

Jester pulled a very confused Fjord aside. She assured him that she trusts Twiggy; but just in case Fjord is still suspicious, Jester could cast Zone of Truth on Twiggy. Fjord expressed concern that Twiggy seems very young and worried that parents may be looking for her. Twiggy told the Mighty Nein she has been on the Squall Eater for about a week. She is from Port Damali but has been stowing away on multiple ships for a while now. When Jester asked about her family, Twiggy cheerfully responded that they have been dead a while. Beau noticed that when Twiggy walks through a shadow she looks like an old woman. Twiggy cheerfully replied "Who knows!" when Beau asked about her age. Fjord was suspicious of Trixie and told Twiggy to keep Trixie to herself.

Happy Fun Ball of Tricks
Caleb finished casting Identify on Twiggy's artifact. The spell failed because the artifact blocked it. Caleb questioned Twiggy more about the sphere and where she got it. Twiggy said she called the sphere her Happy Fun Ball of Tricks. She stole it from somewhere (she's not sure what kind of place it was) in Port Damali. Twiggy took it because she saw a "mean man" named Sir Catagan there. Jester thought Twiggy's description sounds like the Exalted Collection Auction House, an invite only auction house for rich people. As Caleb continued to examine the ball, he found there were Conjuration glyphs carved all over it. Twiggy demonstrated how she made gold appear from the Happy Fun Ball, causing eight gold to appear. Caleb replicated her movements. This time four gold appeared.

Fjord asked Twiggy if she would be all right with them dropping her off when they get to Bisaft. When Jester said Twiggy could stay with the Mighty Nein forever, Fjord said he did not want to be responsible for someone like Kiri who could not defend themselves. Twiggy proved her magical abilities by casting Tasha's Hideous Laughter on Caleb. Caleb resisted the effect, but Fjord was a little more confident that Twiggy could handle herself. Fjord put Jester in charge of watching Twiggy. At Jester's request, Twiggy promised not to steal from the Mighty Nein. Apart from the rest of the group, Beau and Fjord agreed that they were still suspicious of Twiggy. They think she is too sweet and there has to be something else going on with her. Beau also said she thinks Twiggy's illusion magic is unnerving.

Beau asked Fjord to train her to be first mate since he is officially captain now. Fjord agreed. She apologized again for being rude earlier. Fjord assured her he was used to her by now and it didn't bother him. The Mighty Nein realized they were heading back into Clovis Concord territory with a known pirate ship. Nott comes with a new name for the ship, the Ball-Eater. Twiggy cast Mage Hand and used it to repaint the side of the ship beautifully with the new name.

Caduceus let Caleb know that when he cast Detect Magic earlier, he noted that Twiggy has two other magical items besides the Happy Fun Ball of Tricks. Caduceus doesn't think Twiggy is dangerous, just a little loopy from the chocolate and being in a confined space for a long time.



The Mighty Nein

 * Beauregard
 * Caduceus Clay
 * Fjord
 * Frumpkin
 * Jester Lavorre
 * Nott
 * Yasha Nydoorin (played by Matt)
 * Caleb Widogast

New

 * Twiggy
 * Trixie
 * Unnamed young blue dragon

Returning

 * Marius LePual
 * Orly Skiffback
 * Sprinkle
 * The Traveler

Mentioned

 * Avantika
 * Vera
 * Calianna
 * Catagan
 * Halas
 * Kiri

Quotations

 * Nott: (in Halfling to Beauregard, which only the two of them understand) "There's someone hiding downstairs. We need to act fast, but don't alert the others yet; they'll overreact. You and I are the calm and steady ones. We can deal with this."
 * Marisha: "Before I go down, I go-" (in character as Beauregard): 'Uh, Fjord, uhhhh, sorry for being a dick.' Marisha: "-and then just go." Fjord: "Apologies." Caduceus: "That's an improvement."
 * Twiggy: "I'm Twiggy!" (points in pocket) "This is Trixie." Travis: (out of character) "Oh, no." Nott: "Woah!" Twiggy: "Trixie's my bestest friend, and we got kind of stuck on this ship. But I have lots of chocolate and lots of apples. As you can tell, that's all I've been eating. And I wonder if it's ok if I could hang out with you guys for a while? Until we get to shore?"
 * Twiggy: "So, I don't know, I kind of- So there was this really pretty thing, and this really bad guy was going to get it. And I was like, that's not fair, right? So I took it, okay? I took it. You don't care right?"
 * Beau: "Hey Twiggy. Now that you've looked at the fragment, you're bonded to us. Which means if you betray us, we'll know how to find you." Twiggy: "Wow. Well, that sounds pretty serious. So cool with me! I like people. I like hanging out with people. I like trusting people. So that sounds great!"
 * Beau: "Don't gnomes live for a pretty long time?" Twiggy: "Yeah!" Beau: "So you could actually be fairly old-" Twiggy: "Who knows!"
 * Twiggy: "How many tickles does it take to make an octopus laugh?" Caleb: "Oh, no, don't you dare." Twiggy: "Ten tickles!"
 * Beau: "Sorry again for being a dick. I think I've been a little on edge with the boat." Fjord: "It's all right. I'm kind of immune now. I just take it." Beau: "It's really just a knee-jerk. It would've happened if it was anybody. You could've been a scarecrow, and I would've been like 'Fuck off, bro!'"