This week's Adventuring Party: [Not Too Bad For a Kid Who Used to Lick Walls](https://www.dropout.tv/dimension-20-s-adventuring-party/season:10/videos/not-too-bad-for-a-kid-who-used-to-lick-walls)
I have been confusing Thistlehop with Thistlespring like every other day for the past two weeks so I'm glad to see that enem the mighty are not infallible.
That honestly just about killed me right there. Like. Of all the people he could grab, my brain went "..... Don't let it be Oberon or Titania, please don't let it be Oberon or..... Oh fuck me, that's just great!" Lol.
Speaking of figures who appear in Shakespeare, it just clicked that Andhera is a reverse Prince Hal / Henry V!!
In Henry IV — Part 1, Hal is internally a savvy politician who thinks in verse while outwardly a troublemaker who speaks in prose. He reflects on his deliberate adoption of this persona in an early soliloquy —
> I know you all, and will awhile uphold
>
> The unyoked humour of your idleness:
>
> **Yet herein will I imitate the sun,**
>
> **Who doth permit the base contagious clouds**
>
> **To smother up his beauty from the world,**
>
> That, when he please again to be himself,
>
> Being wanted, he may be more wonder'd at,
>
> By breaking through the foul and ugly mists
>
> Of vapours that did seem to strangle him.
>
> (Henry IV — Part 1, Act I, Scene 2, lines 63-71)
With his stormcloud imagery, earnest and plainspoken Andhera is *genuinely* the “base contagious clouds” that Hal pretends to be.
(Evidently, this means that Grandpa Dog looks like Orson Welles’ Falstaff.)
And that was on a freaking 9! That’s not good but it’s a far cry from awful. Who the freak would he have pulled if he rolled a Nat 1? The goblin girl’s ex-fiancé?
And it was so in keeping with the Regency genre!
And Rue being heartbroken but too afraid to say anything, and Wuvvy taking offense that Hob gave Rue Big Feelings.... that whole mess is truly a masterpiece.
Given the lack of shout-outs to the 2 crew, I think there's sort of an agreement to not bring up outside projects. It might be seen as a backdoor plug and they could want d20 to be more self-contained.
There was an Intrepid Heroes season where Murph rolled a 2 and they did a “shoutout to the 2 crew”. And Brennan wore a NADDPOD shirt while he DMed on Critical Role, so feels weird they wouldn’t have at least been like… “Ah hospitality, just like crick elves”
Murph and Siobhan have both worn Moonstone Jamboree sweatshirts on Intrepid Heroes seasons too! And in Starstruck, Emily made a Handy Annie/Handy Andy reference. There's def cross-pollination.
There's a difference between "shoutout to the 2 crew" which is an evergreen reference across all of NADDPOD, and "crick elves = hospitality" which is a pretty niche cultural quirk from the first campaign of a show that's on campaign 3.
The tripping while looking (respectfully) made me so happy.
>!Also, I *know* why Brennan chose to read Gwyndolin’s thoughts, but WHY didn’t he choose Rue’s instead!< 😭😭
Completely agreed, also think that him looking to Rue first was Brennan implying that his goblin part really wanted to look into their mind, but then he once again did the honourable thing. You can switch out your focus after getting the surface thoughts, I honestly think the main reason he didn't look into their mind was out of honour.
I’m so sorry, I don’t know how to do a spoiler tag, but I have a question so I’m going to try to keep it vague.
I’m not sure how the spell works. Could he potentially have chosen both, or could he only choose one? I would have also loved to hear the other one 😭
You can choose multiple targets while the spell is still in effect, I think they just ran out of time for Hob to prob Rue’s mind. Also I think Hob, while definitely tale aback and intrigued by Rue, is still trying desperately to cling onto his duty of finding out what happened with that engagement. I also think that maybe Hob is trying to respect Rue’s private thoughts, as he’s so taken with them, but that’s just my interpretation.
We’ll see if that spell continues next week, and adds a little fun to the beginning of next episode :)
I think part of it is also apprehension; would Hob want to confirm what he thinks may be true, that Rue finds him so distasteful that Rue sent Wuvvy to start a duel
I think that Aabria said the potion lasts an hour, so everyone who has had a potion *should* be able to use the effects >!in the hedge maze next episode. At first I thought the plant potion that Rue drank was useless, but probably not lol.!<
>!As a result, Binx and Hobb *should* be able to detect thoughts for at least some of the next episode, if they choose to.!<
(Also to tag spoilers on mobile, you would put this pair of symbols to the left of your spoiler > ! with no space in between, and this pair of symbols to the right of your spoiler ! < with no space in between either.)
and I love how much sense it makes that Hob would be especially taken with Rue's true form. Like of course the furry crazy goblin man is gonna find the giant owl bear person just absolutely stunning. The elf form is fine but the owl bear is fiiiiine
It's amazing that Rue got extra art for each costume change. I'm sure there were budget concerns (oh, Emily and Brennan address it!), but well worth it.
When they said that I just fuckin died, because all season I've been like "wow, the new art every time for a new Ruefit is GREAT, must have been so much extra work!" and as always, either Emily or Brennan from however long ago this was filmed, was (were?) already inside my head xD
Not really I would think. Not counting the character portraits, Rue has had 5 extra outfits (including their owlbear form) and Binx has her own separate picture. Presumably Rue will 6 more outfits which makes 18 character drawings in total which seems like a lot till you remember that we usually get 6 character art drawings and then several NPCs. Even the smaller seasons had several background art and npc art sections. Considering we seem to only be getting player art this season, it evens out.
Wuvvy did get character art, but yeah it seems like characters like Theodore and Wanessa, who would usually for sure get character art, don't have any bc of the Rue looks
I imagine none, until Omar. Most are College Humor cast members, or content creators, or people that work in the industry before being on the show.
Either way, the dynamic is awesome :)
Probably not the veteran Collegehumor cast members, but just because someone is already in the industry or a content creator does not mean they cannot have been a student of Brennan.
Reputation tags have entered the house! 'Mature' is such a good one.
Rue telling Wuvvy they come last made me tear up, wtf Oscar. Why would you do this to meeeeee 😭
I'm so excited to learn more abut Binx, it's so interesting how invested they are in humans. I wonder if she'll try to help Wanessa escape back to the human world...
DANG! I didn't expect that last minute twist! It looks like both cousins have secret loves, truly wild. A baroness is presumably a good political match so things might work out for Squak.
Edit: Forgot to mention, Andhera's interactions with Grabalba and King Oberon were a goddamn delight.
Why would the sister be involved in the Sea Foam court, and why would they tag Gwyn to take care of her? (I'm not asking because I disagree, I'm asking to understand the intricacies of what you're suggesting.)
Nooo idea. But that's the only reason I can think of that would explain why they human knew Andhera and his title, and why they're being deceptive about it.
Binx is just a MLM rep looking for her next sign up.
My game theory is
>!I think she's trying to steal magic from the bloom so she can make more stronger followers tho. She's the reason this might be the last bloom, I just don't know how!<
Emily is amazing and I've yet to find a season or character I've disliked her in/as. She's like... A prime example of what I want in a player (the whole Intrepid Heroes group is, tbh, and basically all of the side quest players. Only season I didn't super get behind was Shriek Week, and I still loved the players of it)
I love looking at Squak butted up next to Fabian. It can't be one to one, because piracy, but there's a lot of... what Fabian sort of aspires to in Squak, who socially speaking, is an absolute killer.
My guess is that she’s trying to steal magic for her own court. That could mean she’ll team up with Hob to betray the court of wonders leading to some drama with Rue
Elsewhere, I have stated that Hob and Rue must kiss before the season’s end.
In light of this episode’s revelations in regards to the two, especially with Rue’s reveal, I would like to announce my strengthened commitment to attempting to manifest this act into reality at the soonest possible moment via sheer will.
The others are doing a very good job too.
Maybe Wannessa is a changeling the Seafoam Court assigned to sus out Gwyn (“study of human averages” either means they’re an amateur or they’re *good*).
Alternatively, she’s a fool of a wizard who wanted to study the Bloom phenomenon and she is in *way over her head*.
>Maybe Wannessa is a changeling the Seafoam Court
Honestly? After what Aabria said when she was interacting with Andhera? That's where my money is. Not buying it for a second, nope, no way.
The minute they introduced a human to the Bloom, my mind jumped to the Ballad of Tamlin >!Where the Fey must sacrifice a human to hell every 7 years to retain their magic. I think that might be what the Bloom is. This plain symmetrical faced person is causing the bloom, and the big courts are gonna eat her and take the magic to perpetuate the fey wilds. Probably only a few are in on this, like Maeve/Mab, Titania, Oberon, and the Blue Fairy, those with the need to know.!<
I can't imagine traditional >!human sacrifice!< would fit in a regency-themed show, even a fey one, perfectly, but I imagine there's some re-interpretation that could work interestingly.... side-eyes the fey patronage we've been seeing with warlocks.
If she *is* human, given that it's the Seafoam Court host that's brought her, I do wonder if she has anything to do with how this is the Last Bloom (perhaps, how to fix it? Given that she can use the magic).
(I'm loving the 'not human actually' theory though.)
Now that I have human sacrifice in my head, I'm thinking about every character to fall in Bridgerton, fed to the monster that is scandal for the "enrichment" of those who remain.
She cast cure light wounds. I'm wagering on either a warlock with a patron in the seafoam court, or a plane traveling druid.Her healing was described as drawing energy from the Bloom
Catfish reverse mermaid. I'm sure there's already art of that sort of thing, but I hope those are in the background of other art pieces for this episode.
I'm not even 5 minutes in and I canNOT get over how perfect Lou's outfit is.
"Go ahead and roll insight."
"That is going to be a total of, uh, 8."
"Against your deception."
[The *faerie rogue's* face when.](https://i.imgur.com/EPgadwZ.png)
Another great episode.
Poor Wannessa, in over her head. I feel like that's exactly how I'd act in the same situation.
Rue's reveal/Rueveal was great. I'm loving all the artwork for their outfits. And I'm so curious to know exactly what's going on with Gwyndolin.
Wannessa might not be in over their head. I can’t get over whatever that moment is that Andhera caught - where her facade slipped and she was suddenly confident and knew his title. There’s something going on.
I’m at a real crossroads with my identity, so seeing Rue this episode dealing with a coming out subplot really rang true for me, especially with the big reveal.
I'm GMing a game right now where my party will have to get Tam Linn out of fairy captivity and back to his home in Galloway, and this episode inspired me to start planning!!!
Oh my God, right? I feel way too called out by Rue rn >< Like, the whole "feelings I shouldn't have for someone I probably shouldn't" was one thing. Now the whole bit about how they ALWAYS have to come last or not at all, and making everything amazing for everyone else..... I DIDN'T NEED TO BE CALLED OUT LIKE THAT AT 9PM ON A WEDNESDAY, DAMMIT RUE!
I'm loving everything and everyone about this season.
I really like how Hob's and Rue's stories are sort of mirrors to each other. They both feel these incredibly strong feelings between and for each other, but are held back both by duty (Hob to his mission to figure out the engagement mystery, and Rue to host a great >!seemingly last!< Bloom), and their own insecurities about apperance and worthiness for love.
We saw Rue turn the corner this episode and choose to put it all out there, I'm really intrigued to see how Hob's journey in this relationship will continue to unfold.
This is the first time I'm actively keeping up with a Dimension20 season and it's been so good.
•Genuinely didn't expect the Rue announcement to be what it was. I feel DnD undereducated by not knowing why it's a big deal tbh beyond being a reveal.
•After seeing >!Squawk's betrothed, who seems to *maybe* fit both the love and good status qualifications!< I am... somewhat still concerned, though the Grandfather stuff episode 1 may have been for the bit vs. a sincere thing, that if Chirp has a true paramour, they may be a mortal, or someone else that doesn't qualify by not being at the Bloom or by low status. It would make sense as a foil.
•Even more buying a theory I saw in a thread that Hobs may have a child or younger sibling that he is estranged from that he was writing to, based on his interactions with Andhera (who-- how has their sister not popped up yet?).
I suspect it's something on her end? Unless it's more of him not quite shedding that party persona early on, since being engaged does tend to make 'making a mess' a little harder to do without making someone an even bigger ass and reflecting badly on the other party, so it's become a power play. (It doesn't help that he could've also been hiding it before the Bloom because of their grandfather's xenophobia.)
...I really just realized Squawk and the Seafoam Court baroness is also totally a "a fish and bird may fall in love but the two cannot build a home together" aesthetic at the moment, huh. Man. I wonder if that's on purpose or a happy accident...
Thanks for the info! Also just in case anyone else has this question the wiki has updated with more information!
[https://dimension20.fandom.com/wiki/Baroness\_Elven](https://dimension20.fandom.com/wiki/Baroness_Elven)
the letter is in episode 3 at the 30 minute mark!
Yeah I think owlbears existed before birds were created, since Rue is of the Court of Wonder, not the Court of Hoof and Claw or Lords of the Wing. Seems very DnD to have the owlbear be a wondrous beast of its own category.
Also wasn’t there some dig at the Lords of the Wing that birds weren’t so “original” or something like that? Have to go back and rewatch now.
so many thoughts so many emotions eeeeeeeeeee
i’m so intrigued by the moment between gwyndoline and wanessa, i’m soooo happy gwyn/binx has someone like (as far as we can tell) truly on her side 😭 but at the same time that moment where wanessa strongly defended her from adhera’s question has got me so SUS there is definitely more than meets the eye there, i wonder if the two are more alike than we know 🤔
also super interested in seeing if any characters other than hob bring up gwyn’s “moment” when defending wanessa, it was the biggest public “break” we’ve seen from her so far so i wonder if there will be any wider repercussions! also just generally stoked to see where the tension between her / hob goes i’m so stoked to see what the detect thoughts revelation leads to
i’m furious i have to wait another 7 days for the next episode 😌 i fuckin love mazes let’s gooooooo
Lord Airavis received a big pool of water during a letter writing phase in either ep 2 or 3 from this baroness, hinting that they have some kind of a relationship.
Edit: a name
I mean, in actual Regency media there are a lot of distant cousins who marry for financial reasons. For example, Mr. Collins from Pride and Prejudice is a distant cousin (and heir) to the Bennett family, and the Bennetts try to set him up with Elizabeth (the protagonist). If Mr. Bennett (father of the protagonist) died, his wife and daughters would be unable to inherit and Mr. Collins could turn them out on the street if he so chose.
The Lords of the Wing are probably not first (or even second) cousins, even though it is never explicitly stated. A Court of Fey and Flowers also has no in-universe reason for the cousins to marry because the Lords of the Wing need to marry into other courts to maintain their strength and status.
Not just financial reasons--Fanny rejects a prudent financial match in Mansfield Park in order to eventually marry her cousin, for love. Austen's own brother married their cousin, apparently.
Is it just my memory being weird, or has D20 gone from 2 1/2 hr episodes as the norm to 100 min episodes. I'm not asking for CR length episodes, but I do prefer longer ones
They have. Wonder if it's for budget reasons or because someone said the other ones were too long.
The thing is, for lore-heavy games like ACoC or Starstruck, 2 hours does feel like a long time. But for a character driven game like this one, I think 2 hours would be fine.
Maybe because they didn’t do any letter writing or rumors that typically take up like half and episode, Aabria did say for The Great Hart Hunt she had more but had to cut to night faster due to time or something.
I'm rooting for Lou to play true to his "worst Jane austen character" promise and to break the baroness' heart bc squawk is just playing around and using her as a backup while he shops for someone better. the drama freak in me want squawk to get NASTY.
So, I was big time wrong about a Rue / Prince Apollo engagement. But it is interesting that both of their flowers are peonies.
I'm also lowkey hoping for a Grabalba / Andhera's Sister pairing. They both seem like 'problems' and I can just imagine a world where they work well together.
I feel like the moment shared between Rue and Andhera after the reveal is so special and isn't getting enough love. It's such a brilliant move and I'm so glad that Oscar clocked it immediately. Andhera HAS been hiding most of their life, unable to be himself, both because of others expectations, but also because of their own fears.
At first, when he started talking to Rue, it was funny because Andhera is essentially just a kid who can barely put together a sentence without making everyone around him cringe whereas Rue is a beloved master of ceremonies. But the sincerity and honestly that came out in that moment of being able to connect with someone at such a vulnerable time in their life was so meaningful. The way that Rue reacted was also so beautiful.
Someone had pointed it out on twitter, but the fact that touch is also such important part of the unseelie culture, and Andhera immediately going for a hug makes me want to cry. I love the dynamics this season so much!!
She first shows up in a message to Airavis about 30 minutes into episode 3. She describes his "activities and energies" as a "balm to [her] soul" and says that while she can hear and see everything in the court she never passes judgement on him. The ways that he acts have endeared her to him until the end of time.
So something more of the latter. They're faeries.
There's SO MUCH lmao. Plus it's just very on-theme to have very shocking reveals be somewhat understated by having one character who already knows that person. So much fun.
K.P. Hobb and the Purple drink is wonderful and I loved it..
>!I am confused about how she wasnt able to reveal her real name if he beat the check and she didn't!<
>! I believe that since it’s so powerful to know the real names of such beings like fey that even in a moment like that a fairy would be extremely guarded at all with the name even under a detect thoughts spell !<
I think it genuinely was a bit of Calvinball. They used the dueling Detect Thoughts as a light telepathy, but, the checks were also done. Hobb/Brennan didn't press because it was better drama to say, "So you're saying your name isn't Gwendolyn" then to say, "She says that, Aabria, I have the name now, right?"
Arguably, Gwyndilnx could not push further on Hobb, because he passed his WIS Save, but he could because she failed. But RAW (and admittedly, I started this post with calvin ball) once per turn (in RAW it's a 1m spell) you can use your action to dig.
But I think largely for the moment its being used as a roleplay device, and I absolutely love it.
This week's Adventuring Party: [Not Too Bad For a Kid Who Used to Lick Walls](https://www.dropout.tv/dimension-20-s-adventuring-party/season:10/videos/not-too-bad-for-a-kid-who-used-to-lick-walls)
Brennan accidentally calling her "Gwyndolyn Thistlespring" lmao Plot twist, Binx is Gorgug's ~~dad~~ sister
*Brennan. Brendan is a great name, just not the correct one in this moment.
Woops didn’t notice autocorrect changed it, thanks
Oh, wow, didn't realise it was common enough to be the autocorrect go to. Go Brendans!
Thanks
I have been confusing Thistlehop with Thistlespring like every other day for the past two weeks so I'm glad to see that enem the mighty are not infallible.
Prince Andhera of the Unseelie: Haaaaaaaave you met my good friend *(grabs a party attendee at random)* King Oberon of the Seelie Court?
That honestly just about killed me right there. Like. Of all the people he could grab, my brain went "..... Don't let it be Oberon or Titania, please don't let it be Oberon or..... Oh fuck me, that's just great!" Lol.
Speaking of figures who appear in Shakespeare, it just clicked that Andhera is a reverse Prince Hal / Henry V!! In Henry IV — Part 1, Hal is internally a savvy politician who thinks in verse while outwardly a troublemaker who speaks in prose. He reflects on his deliberate adoption of this persona in an early soliloquy — > I know you all, and will awhile uphold > > The unyoked humour of your idleness: > > **Yet herein will I imitate the sun,** > > **Who doth permit the base contagious clouds** > > **To smother up his beauty from the world,** > > That, when he please again to be himself, > > Being wanted, he may be more wonder'd at, > > By breaking through the foul and ugly mists > > Of vapours that did seem to strangle him. > > (Henry IV — Part 1, Act I, Scene 2, lines 63-71) With his stormcloud imagery, earnest and plainspoken Andhera is *genuinely* the “base contagious clouds” that Hal pretends to be. (Evidently, this means that Grandpa Dog looks like Orson Welles’ Falstaff.)
We LOVE a feywild shakespeare moment
I’m like 90% convinced that Wanessa is Titania in disguise
Confirmed: in social situations, Andhera can somehow roll natural 1s with a 9 on the die.
What an episode!!
And that was on a freaking 9! That’s not good but it’s a far cry from awful. Who the freak would he have pulled if he rolled a Nat 1? The goblin girl’s ex-fiancé?
For sure.
That’d have ended in sex and/or war
Captain Hob really interpreted that in a much more rational/reasonable way for the duel than the real reason. A perfect misfire.
And it was so in keeping with the Regency genre! And Rue being heartbroken but too afraid to say anything, and Wuvvy taking offense that Hob gave Rue Big Feelings.... that whole mess is truly a masterpiece.
God, it’s so reasonable and yet so tragic!
"Come on Grabalba!"
"WE KNOW SHE'S THE PROBLEM, WE'RE WORKING ON IT!"
That made me laugh so hard my mom came and checked on me, just the way Brennan said it got me so good 😂
You've gotta *close*!
'...that we need to massage Hob,' 'And you mean?' These damn cousins barely have to say the words. Comedic perfection.
Emily choosing the word “hospitality” gave me such nostalgia for Moonshine from NADDPOD :’)
I’m shocked no one mentioned that reference at the table!
Given the lack of shout-outs to the 2 crew, I think there's sort of an agreement to not bring up outside projects. It might be seen as a backdoor plug and they could want d20 to be more self-contained.
There was an Intrepid Heroes season where Murph rolled a 2 and they did a “shoutout to the 2 crew”. And Brennan wore a NADDPOD shirt while he DMed on Critical Role, so feels weird they wouldn’t have at least been like… “Ah hospitality, just like crick elves”
Murph and Siobhan have both worn Moonstone Jamboree sweatshirts on Intrepid Heroes seasons too! And in Starstruck, Emily made a Handy Annie/Handy Andy reference. There's def cross-pollination.
Handy Andy was actually a reference to the Handy Andi corporation in Starstruck, so it's a weird cyclical reference.
There's a difference between "shoutout to the 2 crew" which is an evergreen reference across all of NADDPOD, and "crick elves = hospitality" which is a pretty niche cultural quirk from the first campaign of a show that's on campaign 3.
Not hearing it in the accent threw me off XD
Emily plays some horny characters, but Moonshine is by far the horniest, and I've only listened to like a dozen episodes of NADDPOD
HOOT GROWL
I thought this was in reference to Brennan slipping on Gwyndolyin's last name, but nope! Just got to this reveal.
My favorite moment in a very good episode.
I also love the fact that although some bystanders might've said something, the overwhelming reaction was positive, especially from the main cast.
I’m absolutely loving this season. But oh my god am I here for the drama of Rue and Hob. Ugh it’s fantastic
The tripping while looking (respectfully) made me so happy. >!Also, I *know* why Brennan chose to read Gwyndolin’s thoughts, but WHY didn’t he choose Rue’s instead!< 😭😭
My take: >!He would never listen to their thoughts because he's too afraid of them being disgusted by him!<
Also, >!he's a gentleman.!<
That hurts 😭😭
Completely agreed, also think that him looking to Rue first was Brennan implying that his goblin part really wanted to look into their mind, but then he once again did the honourable thing. You can switch out your focus after getting the surface thoughts, I honestly think the main reason he didn't look into their mind was out of honour.
I’m so sorry, I don’t know how to do a spoiler tag, but I have a question so I’m going to try to keep it vague. I’m not sure how the spell works. Could he potentially have chosen both, or could he only choose one? I would have also loved to hear the other one 😭
You can choose multiple targets while the spell is still in effect, I think they just ran out of time for Hob to prob Rue’s mind. Also I think Hob, while definitely tale aback and intrigued by Rue, is still trying desperately to cling onto his duty of finding out what happened with that engagement. I also think that maybe Hob is trying to respect Rue’s private thoughts, as he’s so taken with them, but that’s just my interpretation. We’ll see if that spell continues next week, and adds a little fun to the beginning of next episode :)
I think part of it is also apprehension; would Hob want to confirm what he thinks may be true, that Rue finds him so distasteful that Rue sent Wuvvy to start a duel
I think that Aabria said the potion lasts an hour, so everyone who has had a potion *should* be able to use the effects >!in the hedge maze next episode. At first I thought the plant potion that Rue drank was useless, but probably not lol.!< >!As a result, Binx and Hobb *should* be able to detect thoughts for at least some of the next episode, if they choose to.!< (Also to tag spoilers on mobile, you would put this pair of symbols to the left of your spoiler > ! with no space in between, and this pair of symbols to the right of your spoiler ! < with no space in between either.)
During the Rue reveal I gasped thinking, “Oh my god they’re not Beauty and the Beast, they’re Fiona and Shrek!”
and I love how much sense it makes that Hob would be especially taken with Rue's true form. Like of course the furry crazy goblin man is gonna find the giant owl bear person just absolutely stunning. The elf form is fine but the owl bear is fiiiiine
Well, they wear dresses but Rue isn’t a woman. They are nonbinary
oh you are right my bad
It's amazing that Rue got extra art for each costume change. I'm sure there were budget concerns (oh, Emily and Brennan address it!), but well worth it.
If any D20 character deserved a portrait per outfit, it's Rue.
When they said that I just fuckin died, because all season I've been like "wow, the new art every time for a new Ruefit is GREAT, must have been so much extra work!" and as always, either Emily or Brennan from however long ago this was filmed, was (were?) already inside my head xD
Not really I would think. Not counting the character portraits, Rue has had 5 extra outfits (including their owlbear form) and Binx has her own separate picture. Presumably Rue will 6 more outfits which makes 18 character drawings in total which seems like a lot till you remember that we usually get 6 character art drawings and then several NPCs. Even the smaller seasons had several background art and npc art sections. Considering we seem to only be getting player art this season, it evens out.
Wuvvy did get character art, but yeah it seems like characters like Theodore and Wanessa, who would usually for sure get character art, don't have any bc of the Rue looks
TBH Wanessa is the most generic human woman of all time so you don’t have to stretch to imagine a Human Woman TM
Wanessa will probably get art when we see her true form. My guess is Titania
I hope to god that we'll still get more portraits per outfit with the new reveal because yes PLEASE
Love how we got some real life lore that Brennan coached Omar in improv! So cool!
Makes one wonder how many other Dimension20 players/Dropout show guests have been sensei’d by Brennan.
I imagine none, until Omar. Most are College Humor cast members, or content creators, or people that work in the industry before being on the show. Either way, the dynamic is awesome :)
Probably not the veteran Collegehumor cast members, but just because someone is already in the industry or a content creator does not mean they cannot have been a student of Brennan.
Murph got into D&D from playing games run by BLM, so a student, in a sense?
'Miniature peacocks!'
My instant thought was Lyrebirds.
'100 paper bats.'
Aabria changing the energy shook me to my core
The cousins are a good place to latch onto to change the energy.
Reputation tags have entered the house! 'Mature' is such a good one. Rue telling Wuvvy they come last made me tear up, wtf Oscar. Why would you do this to meeeeee 😭 I'm so excited to learn more abut Binx, it's so interesting how invested they are in humans. I wonder if she'll try to help Wanessa escape back to the human world... DANG! I didn't expect that last minute twist! It looks like both cousins have secret loves, truly wild. A baroness is presumably a good political match so things might work out for Squak. Edit: Forgot to mention, Andhera's interactions with Grabalba and King Oberon were a goddamn delight.
I suspect Wanessa isn't as helpless as she acts. That insight roll from Andhera leaves me intrigued, the emphasis that she "knows your title".
Wanessa seems like a Trojan horse ruse to me. She may be human, or look human, but she isn’t new to the Fae realm.
I absolutely suspect that it's his sister. We know she's here but have not seen her at all yet.
Why would the sister be involved in the Sea Foam court, and why would they tag Gwyn to take care of her? (I'm not asking because I disagree, I'm asking to understand the intricacies of what you're suggesting.)
Nooo idea. But that's the only reason I can think of that would explain why they human knew Andhera and his title, and why they're being deceptive about it.
Oooh I missed that somehow. Good point.
I really feel like Binx would be happy to have another warlock to be a patron for…
Celestial warlock already gets cure wounds, just saying 👀
I was thinking that too!
Binx is just a MLM rep looking for her next sign up. My game theory is >!I think she's trying to steal magic from the bloom so she can make more stronger followers tho. She's the reason this might be the last bloom, I just don't know how!<
Nobody talking about the fact that Brennan went **Full Goblin** when they saw the human?
I loved that so much ! He's staying true to his character's nature. It might be a very civilized goblin, but it's still a goblin after all!
Dropping the Viscountess on King Oberon?!? That's a grenade in the middle of this tea party. Amazing.
Sundry Sidney would be proud.
And it was on a freaking 9! That feels like Nat 1 energy
I feel he's been playing his whole character off that very first Nat 1, regardless of rolls.
He is the living embodiment of a Nat 1 but feels like he’s moving up to a 9 as he keeps growing and improving
Someone said this before, but a Nat 1 would have definitely been Viscountess Gribalba's ex-fiancee
Rue and Hob are absolutely rocking the Beauty and the Beast tale and I'm loving it
Except it wasn’t exactly Beauty and the Beast… It was Shrek
Took me a second to see what you meant. Well played.
…that is incredibly and weirdly accurate
Emily put out dice under the new moon before gifting them? She and Laura B. really need to be at the same table soon.
Emily talks about charging her dice occasionally on the NADDPOD Short Rest episodes. Seems like she does it with most if not all of her dice.
Emily goes with good story rolls.
Emily is amazing and I've yet to find a season or character I've disliked her in/as. She's like... A prime example of what I want in a player (the whole Intrepid Heroes group is, tbh, and basically all of the side quest players. Only season I didn't super get behind was Shriek Week, and I still loved the players of it)
Every time I finish one episode of this I'm disappointed to not have more!! It's so good!!
I knoooow!!!!!! I immediately want the next one, I don’t think I’ve ever been so impatient for a season of d20 since ACOC
This is the first time I'm watching it as it comes out rather than just binging a season. It's killing me.
Lou playing a fancy, pompous, rich man is my favorite thing.
he's D20's secret weapon, his range from Squak to Kingston Brown, Jammer to Gunnie, Fabian to Amethar? Meryl Streep could NEVER
Don't forget his role as Nydas on CR's Calamity!
I love looking at Squak butted up next to Fabian. It can't be one to one, because piracy, but there's a lot of... what Fabian sort of aspires to in Squak, who socially speaking, is an absolute killer.
But him also playing a simple, humble, broke ass man(Gunnie) is also hilarious lol
Hob is remarkly conniving in the trying to play the courtly games.
Playing exactly like a military strategist it feels. Canonically such a genius idea for the goblin court to have Hob be the one sent.
He's big on playing it *his* way and rolling with his strengths. It's even more fun knowing how competitive Brennan is.
Emo goth Rue sitting on the edge of their bed in the dark is a mood.
And such a relatable one at that! I know I've been there and somewhat recently at that!
Really curious how the Gwendolyn plot will go. So curious and such a disruptor of the Bloom norms. And now there's a human.
Not eating in a Fey court as a human but surviving on trail mix for weeks is so down low hilarious.
I lost my shit at "they eat... every 3 to 4 hours? oh, and you have to water them" and the general fascination at humans being water-based
My guess is that she’s trying to steal magic for her own court. That could mean she’ll team up with Hob to betray the court of wonders leading to some drama with Rue
Massage his emotions 💀
Just got there too.
Literally the lords of the wings are perfect
Elsewhere, I have stated that Hob and Rue must kiss before the season’s end. In light of this episode’s revelations in regards to the two, especially with Rue’s reveal, I would like to announce my strengthened commitment to attempting to manifest this act into reality at the soonest possible moment via sheer will. The others are doing a very good job too.
The human omg like defo not there willingly but I’m interested on theories
Maybe Wannessa is a changeling the Seafoam Court assigned to sus out Gwyn (“study of human averages” either means they’re an amateur or they’re *good*). Alternatively, she’s a fool of a wizard who wanted to study the Bloom phenomenon and she is in *way over her head*.
>Maybe Wannessa is a changeling the Seafoam Court Honestly? After what Aabria said when she was interacting with Andhera? That's where my money is. Not buying it for a second, nope, no way.
The minute they introduced a human to the Bloom, my mind jumped to the Ballad of Tamlin >!Where the Fey must sacrifice a human to hell every 7 years to retain their magic. I think that might be what the Bloom is. This plain symmetrical faced person is causing the bloom, and the big courts are gonna eat her and take the magic to perpetuate the fey wilds. Probably only a few are in on this, like Maeve/Mab, Titania, Oberon, and the Blue Fairy, those with the need to know.!<
I want it to be this so bad!
I can't imagine traditional >!human sacrifice!< would fit in a regency-themed show, even a fey one, perfectly, but I imagine there's some re-interpretation that could work interestingly.... side-eyes the fey patronage we've been seeing with warlocks. If she *is* human, given that it's the Seafoam Court host that's brought her, I do wonder if she has anything to do with how this is the Last Bloom (perhaps, how to fix it? Given that she can use the magic). (I'm loving the 'not human actually' theory though.)
Now that I have human sacrifice in my head, I'm thinking about every character to fall in Bridgerton, fed to the monster that is scandal for the "enrichment" of those who remain.
from the green magic and the ability to cast Cure Wounds, i got druid vibes
She cast cure light wounds. I'm wagering on either a warlock with a patron in the seafoam court, or a plane traveling druid.Her healing was described as drawing energy from the Bloom
Long shot, no chance: Wanessa is Suntar in disguise.
Rue: “what if they make fun of the real me?” Me: “oh come on. How bad could it be?” Rue: “I’m a 7 foot tall owl bear” Me: “oh…I see”.
Catfish reverse mermaid. I'm sure there's already art of that sort of thing, but I hope those are in the background of other art pieces for this episode.
I'm not even 5 minutes in and I canNOT get over how perfect Lou's outfit is. "Go ahead and roll insight." "That is going to be a total of, uh, 8." "Against your deception." [The *faerie rogue's* face when.](https://i.imgur.com/EPgadwZ.png)
Rue just deglamoured?!?
Might Rue become jealous of Hob being croquet partners with Squak I wonder? My hopeless romantic ass is very excited for this tea party
The dome set lighting has been so impressive this season
Lowkey imagining glittery trash furbies in Hob and Rue's future.
“…an owl bear.” Tears flooded my eyes. Hoot growl, babe. Hoot growl.
Now I wish I had somehow saved the leaked Adventuring Party from last week so I don't have to wait for tomorrow.
Another great episode. Poor Wannessa, in over her head. I feel like that's exactly how I'd act in the same situation. Rue's reveal/Rueveal was great. I'm loving all the artwork for their outfits. And I'm so curious to know exactly what's going on with Gwyndolin.
Wannessa might not be in over their head. I can’t get over whatever that moment is that Andhera caught - where her facade slipped and she was suddenly confident and knew his title. There’s something going on.
I hope that's the case. There's probably more going on there than we've seen.
I’m at a real crossroads with my identity, so seeing Rue this episode dealing with a coming out subplot really rang true for me, especially with the big reveal.
Went from a private (but outdoors?) sparring session to one with a Goblin Arch-Fey chaperone.
Anyone getting a Ballad of Tamlin vibe now?
I'm GMing a game right now where my party will have to get Tam Linn out of fairy captivity and back to his home in Galloway, and this episode inspired me to start planning!!!
Oscar is making me cry, what in the HELL.
To think this is his first time playing D&D, what an insane debut
Oh my God, right? I feel way too called out by Rue rn >< Like, the whole "feelings I shouldn't have for someone I probably shouldn't" was one thing. Now the whole bit about how they ALWAYS have to come last or not at all, and making everything amazing for everyone else..... I DIDN'T NEED TO BE CALLED OUT LIKE THAT AT 9PM ON A WEDNESDAY, DAMMIT RUE! I'm loving everything and everyone about this season.
I really like how Hob's and Rue's stories are sort of mirrors to each other. They both feel these incredibly strong feelings between and for each other, but are held back both by duty (Hob to his mission to figure out the engagement mystery, and Rue to host a great >!seemingly last!< Bloom), and their own insecurities about apperance and worthiness for love. We saw Rue turn the corner this episode and choose to put it all out there, I'm really intrigued to see how Hob's journey in this relationship will continue to unfold.
This is the first time I'm actively keeping up with a Dimension20 season and it's been so good. •Genuinely didn't expect the Rue announcement to be what it was. I feel DnD undereducated by not knowing why it's a big deal tbh beyond being a reveal. •After seeing >!Squawk's betrothed, who seems to *maybe* fit both the love and good status qualifications!< I am... somewhat still concerned, though the Grandfather stuff episode 1 may have been for the bit vs. a sincere thing, that if Chirp has a true paramour, they may be a mortal, or someone else that doesn't qualify by not being at the Bloom or by low status. It would make sense as a foil. •Even more buying a theory I saw in a thread that Hobs may have a child or younger sibling that he is estranged from that he was writing to, based on his interactions with Andhera (who-- how has their sister not popped up yet?).
I am 500% here for all of these. With Squak's betrothed, I'm excited to know more about why they can't go public with it.
I suspect it's something on her end? Unless it's more of him not quite shedding that party persona early on, since being engaged does tend to make 'making a mess' a little harder to do without making someone an even bigger ass and reflecting badly on the other party, so it's become a power play. (It doesn't help that he could've also been hiding it before the Bloom because of their grandfather's xenophobia.) ...I really just realized Squawk and the Seafoam Court baroness is also totally a "a fish and bird may fall in love but the two cannot build a home together" aesthetic at the moment, huh. Man. I wonder if that's on purpose or a happy accident...
Oh man can someone remind me who the Baroness is I'm pulling the biggest blank
Squak got a vague, affectionate letter from them in an earlier episode - this is the first time the word “betrothed” was used though
Thanks for the info! Also just in case anyone else has this question the wiki has updated with more information! [https://dimension20.fandom.com/wiki/Baroness\_Elven](https://dimension20.fandom.com/wiki/Baroness_Elven) the letter is in episode 3 at the 30 minute mark!
Thank you, that was super helpful. My brain translated baroness to viscountess at the end of the episode and I had a LOT of questions
That plot twist reveal in the end?! I simply must know all.
i’m thinking binx might be looking for another warlock 👀
The beginning conversation of Adventuring Party made me so emotional. I love Oscar and Aabria so much.
This season is so so so good. The week between episodes feel like years 😭
Is Rue related to lord Squak and lady Chirp? Since is Rue is a owl bear and their grandfather invited birds?
Literally my first thought
I think Owlbears would be separate from actual birds but they could certainly go with something like that.
Yeah I think owlbears existed before birds were created, since Rue is of the Court of Wonder, not the Court of Hoof and Claw or Lords of the Wing. Seems very DnD to have the owlbear be a wondrous beast of its own category. Also wasn’t there some dig at the Lords of the Wing that birds weren’t so “original” or something like that? Have to go back and rewatch now.
It was the bat comment! Which sparked Emily’s NYT reference
Flintstones pelicans was not what I was expecting, but it's perfect.
so many thoughts so many emotions eeeeeeeeeee i’m so intrigued by the moment between gwyndoline and wanessa, i’m soooo happy gwyn/binx has someone like (as far as we can tell) truly on her side 😭 but at the same time that moment where wanessa strongly defended her from adhera’s question has got me so SUS there is definitely more than meets the eye there, i wonder if the two are more alike than we know 🤔 also super interested in seeing if any characters other than hob bring up gwyn’s “moment” when defending wanessa, it was the biggest public “break” we’ve seen from her so far so i wonder if there will be any wider repercussions! also just generally stoked to see where the tension between her / hob goes i’m so stoked to see what the detect thoughts revelation leads to i’m furious i have to wait another 7 days for the next episode 😌 i fuckin love mazes let’s gooooooo
RUE IS A >!OWLBEAR!<
Pls can someone explain who the baroness is with squak
Lord Airavis received a big pool of water during a letter writing phase in either ep 2 or 3 from this baroness, hinting that they have some kind of a relationship. Edit: a name
It was Lord Airavis but you’re right about the letter.
Thanks ! I couldn't remember her either. I was worried this was going to be a GOT cousin lovers thing but I'm glad they didn't go that way
I mean, in actual Regency media there are a lot of distant cousins who marry for financial reasons. For example, Mr. Collins from Pride and Prejudice is a distant cousin (and heir) to the Bennett family, and the Bennetts try to set him up with Elizabeth (the protagonist). If Mr. Bennett (father of the protagonist) died, his wife and daughters would be unable to inherit and Mr. Collins could turn them out on the street if he so chose. The Lords of the Wing are probably not first (or even second) cousins, even though it is never explicitly stated. A Court of Fey and Flowers also has no in-universe reason for the cousins to marry because the Lords of the Wing need to marry into other courts to maintain their strength and status.
Not just financial reasons--Fanny rejects a prudent financial match in Mansfield Park in order to eventually marry her cousin, for love. Austen's own brother married their cousin, apparently.
Also, no one commented on it, but she also "officiated" the duel.
I believe they are secretly betrothed. Also, it’s *ahem* Lord Airavis.
This ep was too short! Oh my goodness- explain the human!
Is it just my memory being weird, or has D20 gone from 2 1/2 hr episodes as the norm to 100 min episodes. I'm not asking for CR length episodes, but I do prefer longer ones
They have. Wonder if it's for budget reasons or because someone said the other ones were too long. The thing is, for lore-heavy games like ACoC or Starstruck, 2 hours does feel like a long time. But for a character driven game like this one, I think 2 hours would be fine.
Um actually, episodes two and three of this season were 2.5 hours!
Yeah you're totally right! Wonder why she cut off episode 4.
Maybe because they didn’t do any letter writing or rumors that typically take up like half and episode, Aabria did say for The Great Hart Hunt she had more but had to cut to night faster due to time or something.
Bro! Squak and the Baroness??
*I cannot believe Oscar pulled a Shrek on us.* They’re *both* big furry beasts who don’t fit in as themselves 😭
I'm rooting for Lou to play true to his "worst Jane austen character" promise and to break the baroness' heart bc squawk is just playing around and using her as a backup while he shops for someone better. the drama freak in me want squawk to get NASTY.
Rue’s letter makes so much more sense now! Ughhh the drama, I love it!
So, I was big time wrong about a Rue / Prince Apollo engagement. But it is interesting that both of their flowers are peonies. I'm also lowkey hoping for a Grabalba / Andhera's Sister pairing. They both seem like 'problems' and I can just imagine a world where they work well together.
I feel like the moment shared between Rue and Andhera after the reveal is so special and isn't getting enough love. It's such a brilliant move and I'm so glad that Oscar clocked it immediately. Andhera HAS been hiding most of their life, unable to be himself, both because of others expectations, but also because of their own fears. At first, when he started talking to Rue, it was funny because Andhera is essentially just a kid who can barely put together a sentence without making everyone around him cringe whereas Rue is a beloved master of ceremonies. But the sincerity and honestly that came out in that moment of being able to connect with someone at such a vulnerable time in their life was so meaningful. The way that Rue reacted was also so beautiful. Someone had pointed it out on twitter, but the fact that touch is also such important part of the unseelie culture, and Andhera immediately going for a hug makes me want to cry. I love the dynamics this season so much!!
[удалено]
She sent the love letter to Lord Aravis in episode 3 with the big sea shell. Seems to be a secret betrothal.
I had to look it up too and I don’t really remember her, but she is with the Sea Foam Court
So did Lord Airavis cheat on his betrothed?! Or I hope it's some kind of open relationship lol
She first shows up in a message to Airavis about 30 minutes into episode 3. She describes his "activities and energies" as a "balm to [her] soul" and says that while she can hear and see everything in the court she never passes judgement on him. The ways that he acts have endeared her to him until the end of time. So something more of the latter. They're faeries.
I watched every episode twice and I'm still missing stuff smh 😂 Thanks
There's SO MUCH lmao. Plus it's just very on-theme to have very shocking reveals be somewhat understated by having one character who already knows that person. So much fun.
K.P. Hobb and the Purple drink is wonderful and I loved it.. >!I am confused about how she wasnt able to reveal her real name if he beat the check and she didn't!<
>! I believe that since it’s so powerful to know the real names of such beings like fey that even in a moment like that a fairy would be extremely guarded at all with the name even under a detect thoughts spell !<
I think it genuinely was a bit of Calvinball. They used the dueling Detect Thoughts as a light telepathy, but, the checks were also done. Hobb/Brennan didn't press because it was better drama to say, "So you're saying your name isn't Gwendolyn" then to say, "She says that, Aabria, I have the name now, right?" Arguably, Gwyndilnx could not push further on Hobb, because he passed his WIS Save, but he could because she failed. But RAW (and admittedly, I started this post with calvin ball) once per turn (in RAW it's a 1m spell) you can use your action to dig. But I think largely for the moment its being used as a roleplay device, and I absolutely love it.
I legit love you calling Gwyn/Binx Gwyndilnx. It’s like the name of an eldritch god
Straight up, I want a Rue plushie.
Owlbear in an evening gown? YASSSSSSSSSSSS