Title: Burrow’s End
GM: Aabria Iyengar  
Players: Brennan Lee Mulligan (he/him) as Tula (she/her), Isabella ‘Izzy’ Roland (she/her) as Lila (she/her), Erika Ishii (she/him/all) as Ava (she/her), Siobhan Thompson (she/her) as Jaysohn (he/him), Rashawn Nadine Scott (she/her) as Viola (she/her), and Jasper William Cartwright (he/him) as Thorn Vale (he/him)
Streaming Service: Dropout

If you missed it, catch our review of the first episode here!

Our Stupendous Stoats return, and with the death of most of their numbers weighing on them, the future looks dangerous. Tula quickly comforts her children, but the unknown weighs heavily on our protagonists. This is nothing any of them have faced before. Even Thorn Vale’s experience of the unexplainable cannot ease their discomfort.

Brennan goes full mother mode. Repurposing his divine sense to find Tula’s children, Brennan softly talks Jaysohn and Lila out of a tree. Both children fear being on the ground due to the recent events. They’re both confused, uncertain what is happening.

Outside the warren, tensions remain high, and the two outside members who survived alongside our players are at odds with Ava and the dynamic between the eldest stoat and her son-in-law, Thorn Vale. To the two, Teedles and Olliver, Thorn Vale is a figure of reverence. As members of the Lukura who hold Thorn Vale in high regards, they can’t fathom the distrust and, to their eyes, disrespect Ava gives Thorn Vale. Furthermore, Thorn Vale’s reluctance to demonstrate his powers leaves the two questioning their place in the group.

Nobody expected the first combat map would be inside a bear, but a group of chipmunks attack from their apparent home inside the gigantic still living predator. Blood in their mouths is disturbing enough, but a ribbon-tongue capable of grappling inspires so many questions.

While most people concentrate on the chipmunks, Brennan goes straight for the bear’s heart. Tula goes full circle. From fear to terrified savagery, she manages to stop the bear. As Lila helps Jaysohn, Viola attacks the bear from the outside, working alongside her sister.

After Ava severs the spine, Lila ends up thrown across the bear. She desperately races to her mother’s help, but her action harms her mother. Of course, the chipmunks would’ve done worse if given the chance. A perfectly tied Nat1 ensured Lila’s blood-covered countenance doesn’t intimidate her mother.

Sometimes doing the cool thing backfires. However, sometimes taking a risk pays off, so tensions are high when Brennan goes to knock out the parasites which are keeping the bear alive. As our players levels up, the chipmunks drop, and the bear dies. Biting the brain, Viola and Thorn Vale go unconscious as combat ends.

Highlights

Aabria started this episode with a bang, hinting that she had expected the group to have managed to escape the deadly dust with a higher number. What this will mean for the future of our Stupendous Stoats, we can only guess, but odds aren’t looking good.

Dimension 20‘s art department always hits it out of the park, but the bear map with its blood soaked chipmunk. When Aabria opened up that bear, showing the gory insides, the players went wild, and with a beating heart, the horror hit harder than Neverafter. If we had any question if it would hit hard for the Halloween season, we have our answer.

Final Score (4.5 out of 5 Stars)

Did the rule of cool go too far with Izzy’s Nat20 insight? Aabria permitted the roll despite it landing cockeyed in exchange for three extra points of damage, so some might find it debatable; however, when it comes to making an incredible story, Aabria has a history of knowing when to lay down the law and when to bend the rules, so I’m solidly in support.

We had some fantastic sibling moments, and without the weight of a crown or political intrigue like we’ve seen in prior seasons, the familial dynamics truly shine. The whole group dove head first into their feral savagery, so Ava’s pride at her grandchildren’s first kill hit perfectly.

Our players barely made it out of the bear in one piece. What the forest has waiting, and what the Blue may have in store, we can’t tell, but from the preview of next week’s episode, our group may fracture. If you have predictions for episode three or want to share your thoughts on the second episode of Burrow’s End, head down to the comments below or go over to our Discord channel to join the conversation.

Featured Image: Dimension 20

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The Boss Rush Podcast: The Flagship Podcast of Boss Rush Media and the Boss Rush Network

The Boss Rush Podcast – The Boss Rush Podcast is the flagship podcast of Boss Rush Media and the Boss Rush Network. Each week, Corey, Stephanie, LeRon, and their friends from around the internet come together with other creators, developers, and industry veterans to talk about games they’ve been playing, discuss video game and entertainment based topics, and answer questions solicited on social media and the community Discord. 

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