There's more to Oz than the Yellow Brick Road

The main thing that happened this week was my birthday, which was on Sunday. I spent the day just relaxing and doing the things that I wanted to do. I resolved that I would treat myself to some RPG books from the game store, but wound up having the hardest time deciding what to buy.

My gaming collection as it stands now is very scattered. I packed up a pretty impressive collection about 5 years ago when I was getting ready to move to San Diego and most of it is still in storage. And my digital collection continues to expand. So whatever I buy now has to be something that either I don't already have or is sufficiently worth having a copy on hand right now, or something that I have a digital copy of and want a physical copy of or something that I don't have in any format. Combined with that eternal question "When am I actually going to play any of this?" I spent quite some time going back and forth among my options.

I settled on the new Cyberpunk RPG from R. Talsorian Games. With the new video game and Netflix show, it felt like time to get on board that train. I also picked up the Dungeon Masters Guide for D&D 5e. For a number of reasons, I haven't delved deeply into 5e, but this is one more step to taking that plunge. Now I just need the Monster Manual and I'll have the 3 main books.

Now on to the continuing adventures of Seth Creighton, Apothecary of High Rannoc.

Week 2

Although I failed to save my first patient, I was eager to make up for it with my second patient. Little did I suspect that my next patient would be an ogre from the mountains complaining of an ogre-sized hangover.

In game terms, a hangover has the Tags Poison* and Stomach* but a Timer of only 4. None of the ingredients I collected last week will help with these Tags, so I've got to go foraging,

I'll be heading to Hero's Hollow, a nearby dungeon where novice adventures go to prove themselves, to acquire Skullcap* and Crow Coal**. Skullcap should be the easiest, so I'll start there.

1: The areas closest to the entrance of the dungeon are supposedly well explored and relatively safe. That doesn't mean that surprises can't happen, though. Some crafty kobolds dug a pit trap where there wasn't one before and I made the mistake of falling into it. After playing dead at the bottom of the pit when the kobolds came to check on it and then climbing out, I'd lost 2 ticks of Timer, leaving me with only one more chance to gather the reagents for my hangover cure.

2: With only one chance left, I try to track down some Crow Coal. That way, if another hangover comes my way, I'll only have to find the Skullcap to have a complete cure. While I don't find any Crow Coal, I do find a map drawn by a novice adventurer. It's not very good, but it does have a description of a small pond with a Shock Fish. Not useful for a hangover, but it could help me treat other ailments.

Defeated again, I return to find my patient has recovered without my help. Or at least, the ogre's headache is down to the point where he is no longer in agony, but just very irritable. This time, my failure harms my Reputation. I didn't mention it last time, but I start with a Reputation starts at 5, as the locals are willing to give me a chance after their last apothecary disappeared mysteriously. But as the ogre passes through town grumbling on his way home, I can feel the villagers disapproval as I drop to Reputation 4.

Downtime: I only need 4 more segments of downtime to get the golem back in working order. I get it started building a Garden Plot which should be completed by the end of the season. I'll just wait out the 2 remaining segments because I want to try one more ailment and hopefully successfully cure it.

Week 3.

Flossie Patton may not consider her Toad Nose a blessing, but I sure do. As annoying as it is, it's a stable illness that won't get worse or better regardless of how much time I take. There's no Timer on this Ailment.

The Tags for the Ailment are Warts* and Mood*. This calls for a trip out to Glimmerwood Grove for some Songberries and a Princess Toad.

1: Just as I manage to locate a Songberry bush, I am accosted by a swarm of tiny pixies who play keepaway with the berries. Before long, they tire of their game and I gather my Songberries in peace.

2: I encounter the Princess Frog trapped in a spider's web. As it tries to wriggle free, I notice that a couple of the spider's legs are broken and its eyes flash iridescent colors. If I could heal its injured legs, it might be able to help me find magical ingredients in Glimmerwood Grove. I know Surgeon's Sap grows in the area, and even if there were a Timer on Flossie's Ailment, I already have the reagents for that.

3: Luck is on my side this week! Not only do I find Surgeon's Sap almost immediately, I see a unicorn further up the trail. As I close close to it, it notices me and runs off. Maybe someday.

Returning to the spider's web, I apply the Surgeon's Sap to the creature's broken legs. As I look into those 8 iridescent eyes, I sense that I have made a friend in the Glimmerwood Grove.

Rushing back to my cottage, I proceed to boil the Princess Frog's mucus before incorporating a paste made of crushed songberries. Once this is distilled into a thick paste, I apply it to Flossie's nose. We share a cup of tea while the paste does its work.  She then goes to wash her face and reveals her petite, button nose without a trace of the warts that had previously covered it.

With my first success, my Reputation begins to improve. It's now back up to 5. I also earned 24 Silver pieces.

To summarize:

Reputation: 5

Silver: 24

Reagents: Ambergris, Pixie Fur, Star Shard, Shock Fish,

Familiar: Spider (Magic Eye; Glimmerwood Grove only)

Golem Helper: Make Garden Plot (Will be finished by the end of Spring)

I still need to resolve Downtime for Week 3, but I'll do that next time.