Title: Cloudward, Ho!
GM: Brennan Lee Mulligan
Players: Emily Axford (she/her) as Marya Junková (she/her). Zac Oyama (he/him) as Daisuke Bucklesby (he/him). Siobhan Thompson (she/her) as Vanellope ‘Van’ Chapman (she/her). Lou Wilson (he/him) as Montgomery ‘Monty’ LaMontgommery (he/him). Ally Beardsley (they/them) as Olethra MacLeod (she/her). Brian Murphy (he/him) as Maxwell Gotch (he/him).
Streaming Service: Dropout

If you missed them, catch up on our review of the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth, and eleventh episodes!

Returning to Zood in the city of Oda, we rejoin our Intrepid Heroes where we left off. They run into two women wearing medieval Gathi armor. Monty and Maxwell manage to communicate, discovering that they served a queen who died six hundred years ago.

The strange movement of time between worlds continues to raise some interesting questions. With the looping of Zood and Zern, it would be believable for the time between worlds to not be linear. However, that does raise questions about Comfrey’s movements back and forth as well as Mordecestershire’s.

Monty tracks down an elder, immediately receiving care and consideration. Though they don’t have a submersible, they may be able to make one.

The group immediately adores the nut pugs, adopting as many as they can. Thrilled, Monty collects bits of everything, including a coffee making flower and clam-growing tree.

With compressed faces and already horrible breathing problems, the hard outer shell of a nut pug just begs the question of how much worse the lungs on these creatures would be compared to the average pug. Then again, if the respiratory system is more like a turtle’s, maybe this is an improvement.

In addition to nature, the crew meets Rufus Radish, who is currently helping the knights who came by sea as well. Everything in Oda is bio-engineered. All tech is plant-based. Rufus points out an old section of the city which is the only place made of stone. It appears to be the city of Calipan, which disappeared during a number of plagues.

Per Rufus, all the taken Gathi cities predate the final war between Zood and Zern. He also mentions encountering ships run on Widow’s Breathe. Oda grows machines. Their biotechnology aims to do things the right way, regardless of how long it takes, to ensure the least harm possible.

While Marya and Van work with Rufus, taking Courtney the baby T-Rex with them, Monty and Olethra follow a blue pterosaur, Archy, that is connected to Mordecestershire and the Eyeless Hand. Unfortunately, after a trail of Nat 1s, a draining of luck points, and a series of incredibly terrible stealth rolls, Olethra gets knocked out, and Monty is confronted by the enemy.

Mordecestershire has aged him. He appears years or perhaps even decades beyond their last encounter. Tendrils come from his eyes. He’s clearly connected to the Eyeless Hand’s forbidden god. In this moment, he appears to steal the name from her mind.

Monty lunges forward, tearing Mordecestershire away from Olethra. Lifting her into his arms, he runs away, going back into the open field. Olethra wakes, managing to get a shot off and strike Mordecestershire. Greatly injured, the pair returns to the ship.

Putting a rush on the submersible, the crew returns, searching Mordecestershire’s place. They find references the beacons in the Temple of Katur. Marya also pulls out a knife, calming the tendril and remembering that her father had once said the name in his sleep. As gently as the creature treats Van, she still can’t fully consider it good or even neutral as it has taken her family members for generations.

If they were hoping to find Mordecestershire, they’re out of luck, but our Intrepid Heroes push ahead, and as the episode winds to a close, we’re given a look at the guardians of the temple.

Beyond Comfrey, the crew sees multiple broken statues, including many who look like members of Van’s family. As they come in sight of the fallen temple, the Eyeless Hand attacks.

Highlights

I don’t think I’ve ever loved a setting or wanted to live in another world as much as I’d love to live in Oda. The people, the technology – Brennan and the Dimension 20 Art Team absolutely hit it out of the park on this one.

Final Score (4 out of 5 Stars)

Tube Zood and time jumping featured heavily; however, while Mordecestershire’s reveal confirms that time travel (unwilling as it seems to be) is happening, Comfrey’s statue and the timeline there definitely suggest the professor has more control over her movement between worlds and possibly times. The list of questions that our Intrepid Heroes will have for the mad scientist once they locate her just keeps growing, and the likelihood of officially finding her seems to be headed in the opposite direction.

While I enjoyed the pacing of this episode and found my new fantasy isekai location, I’m left a bit frustrated by the puppeteer aspects unfolding from Comfrey. I’m all for a good catalyst, but she left a trail of crumbs that seems to be leading the crew right where she wants them to go. Of course, plot does that, and Brennan has to use the NPCs to motivate the players in the right direction to move the plot forward; however, this season has felt a bit heavier handed than the last few.

We’ll have to wait until the next episode to learn more, but as combat is where Dimension 20‘s editing unfailingly shines, I’m excited for what’s ahead.

Though Murph hinted at a rumor about Van’s namesake, he kept the particulars to himself, so the rumors remain the same:

1. There’s a kill switch in the MechLeod.
   • Marya finally told Olethra, but nothing was found yet.
2. Olethra MacLeod is a robot.
3. Pappy was lost at air for six months.
4. Van is secretly working with the Confederate Republic.
   • This rumor came from a member of Marya’s and Van’s old crew.
   • Van denied it, noting her family money means she would never need to take a bribe.
5. Van won the Grand Kabilian Toe Wrestling Championship.
   • Confirmed by Van.
6. Daisuke can hold his breath for an hour.
   • Zach confirmed this to be a lie, but nothing was said in game.

Let us know what you think in the comments below or go over to our Discord channel to join the conversation.

Featured Image: Dimension 20

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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