Norbert sat at the head of the table and gazed at the five individuals seated around it. After a few moments the Plushie Cybunny placed his paws flat upon the table's surface; leaned forward, and said in a solemn voice,

"Welcome one and all: to the inaugural session of the Neopia Central "D In D" club."

The participants looked at each other in eager anticipation. Norbert continued.

""D In D refers, of course, to Draiks In Dungeons. As founder of the club and owner of the rule books, guides and (hand painted) character figurines I will be assuming the role of C.M - that is, Campaign Master. Each of you will be required to choose a character from one of the available factions; Soldier, Mage, Healer, Thief, Bard. Ideally a campaign will contain at least one person from each faction. Once roles have been assigned you will each roll for stats. Then the campaign can begin."

As soon as Norbert finished speaking the others began conversing together in high, excited voices. A Steampunk Bori named Byron spoke above the others.

"I want to be a Mage!" he said firmly “I will be known as Merlin Graybeard.” Next to him sat Larry, a spotted Elephante. "I call dibs on Healer!" he cried “My character will be called Magica Tenderheart.”. The others picked roles in quick succession. Marty the Candy Mynci picked Thief, dubbing himself “Paddyfoot Sneaker.”; Alice the Maractite Usul opted for a Soldier named “Sergeant Brave”; and Tom the Island Kacheek settled for Bard - not too happily, but it was the only thing left. He chose the name “Grumble Alute.” Norbert handed out folders marked with each participant's name. He instructed them to list their character's and stats inside, telling them,

“These guides are yours forever. Treat them with respect.”

His voice then took on a slightly different tone, and the individuals around the table looked at him eagerly.

“Now,” he said, “let the adventure begin...”

Grumble Alute raised a paw. “Maybe it’s food poisoning?”

The Mynci shushed him and turned apologetically to the group. “It’s his first time.”

The C.M smiled. “You stand now before the towering golden gates of Brightvale Castle. As you approach, a guard in shiny armor steps forward and raises a spear.”

“HALT,” Norbert said in a deep voice. “No one may enter. The King is not receiving visitors.”

Sergeant Brave moved her tiny figurine forward. “I say to him, soldier to soldier, we must speak with the King. Neopia depends on it.”

“The guard shifts uncomfortably,” the C.M replies. “but says he cannot allow it. Perhaps now is the time for a persuasion check…”

All the players looked towards Sergeant Brave, except for Grumble Alute who just looked confused.

“She’ll roll the dice,” Paddyfoot Sneaker explained. “In Draiks in Dungeons, you roll to attempt actions. Higher rolls mean success and lower rolls… well, we’ll find out.”

The dice clattered towards the middle of the table and landed on…

"What are we going to do?" Magica whispers to them. "Should I try to charm him?"

A pair of dice clatter on the table before anyone has time to react. Grumble says, "Can I play a little song to show him that we're part of the celebration party?"

Norbert raises his eyebrows but leans forward to check the dice when the stop rolling. "Well, look at that! A natural twenty."

"Beginner's luck!" harrumphs Merlin.

"Is that a good thing?" Grumble asks, ignoring him.

"It's perfect! The guard listens to your story. How do you convince him?"

"I, uh, say-" Grumble looks around, not sure what to do, and sees Paddyfoot make a strumming gesture with her hands. "I mean, I sing a song.

'The king has saved the day, His wisdom triumphed all. The grey curse has been lifted, So let us have a ball.'"

Grumble finishes his ditty with some jazz hands.

"The guard applauds you wholeheartedly," Norbert says, unable to contain his laughter. "He lets you in and tells one of the pages nearby to lead you to the Great Hall. Inside you find..."

"To whom it may concern, I have captured King Hagan and placed him in a secret dungeon below Brightvale Castle. If you wish to see him again, you must find the hidden entrance to the dungeon in this Great Hall, and navigate the traps within."

The group gasped at the revelation while Norbert relished the element of surprise.

"Can you describe the room in greater detail for us?" asked Sergeant Brave. "After all, we need to know the surroundings better to find the entrance."

Norbert cleared his voice. "The Great Hall is a very open space with a central dining table. There is a fireplace to the east for warmth, and various paintings of King Hagan displayed across the walls towards the south. In the corners of the room are statues of mythical figures, while on the west is a large bookshelf with some of the most ancient and sacred literature in Brightvale."

"Those all sound like good hiding places for a switch to a hidden entrance..." thought Grumble Alute out loud.

After a bit of thinking, Paddyfoot Sneaker broke the silence. "It's too obvious. Moving a statue always triggers a hidden entrance. As the thief, I'm up to the task."

Norbert grabbed a pair of dice and tossed them to Marty, who placed his figurine near one of the statues on the board. "Then make it happen, Paddyfoot Sneaker! It's time for your dexterity check..."

“Fifteen!” Paddyfoot hollered in triumph.

Nobert nodded as he consulted his C.M. notes. “With a fifteen for his dexterity check, Paddyfoot circles the statue of his choosing stealthily - a scholarly Skeith holding a scroll between his hands, likely one of the original founders of Brightvale - and searches for a hidden lever. As he runs his fingers along the scroll, he pulls and....”

Everyone leans in in anticipation.

“...nothing seems to happen.”

A collective groan rippled across the table.

“Are you sure?” Paddyfoot demanded. “I got a fifteen!”

“And with a fifteen,” Norbert replied patiently, tapping his notes, “you are quite certain of one thing: that statue is not the entrance.”

Sergeant leaned forward, studying the board. “If I were designing a secret dungeon beneath the Brightvale Great Hall, I wouldn’t make the entrance obvious. It would be symbolic and strategic.”

Merlin stroked his imaginary beard. “King Hagan is known for wisdom above all else. Perhaps the answer lies not in trickery, but intellect. Before we start pulling and pushing the other statues in the room, I propose an investigation check on the bookshelf of sacred Brightvale literature.”

Magica nodded in approval, and dropped the dice into Merlin’s hand. Paddyfoot crossed his arms with a pout - he was convinced it would’ve been the statue. Grumble simply shrugged and waited for the next roll, still not entirely clear where this was going.

Merlin cups the dice and shakes them with theatrical flair before casting them onto the game board, landing on...

"Well, to the best of your knowledge, these certainly do appear to be books!" Norbert said with a smile. "There are some that are bigger than others, and as you pull several down from the stacks, you can confirm that they were all written using ink."

"Sorry, everyone," said Merlin. "I was hoping for a better roll."

The dice started bouncing on the table once again, and all eyes turned to Grumble Alute. He shrugged, saying "I might detect some magic words in those books or something."

Norbert watched the dice skittering slowly to a stop with interest. "Yes, Grumble, you certainly can detect magic here."

Sergeant Brave looked at the die and whooped. "You got a nineteen!" The campaign manager cleared his throat as she grinned sheepishly, apologizing for interrupting.

"You cast a spell to detect the presence of any magic in the room, and a book begins to glow on the shelf. When you reach for it, it falls to the ground with an illustrated page open. It shows King Hagan standing behind a grand telescope, and it looks very familiar."

"Oh!" exclaimed Magica Tenderheart. "It must be one of the paintings! I'll roll for investigation... and I got a thirteen!"

"You lead the group back to the south of the Great Hall, stopping in front of a portrait of King Hagan observing the skies." Norbert leaned in closer, and the rest of the group eagerly followed suit. "Looking closely at the engraved label under the frame, you notice there is a raised star in the corner. You press it, and there's a THUNDEROUS crash!" He slammed his paws on the table, making everyone jump in their seats, and grinned at the dramatic effect.

"You spin around to find the source of the booming noise, and notice the fireplace has gone dark. Where there once was a wall connecting to the chimney, there is now an arch with steps leading downwards... What do you do?"...

"You take the stairs down. After what feels like an eternity, the stairwell finally comes to an end and the party emerges into a near-pitch black room shrouded in shadow.” The C.M. said.

"I cast a light spell to illuminate the room," Merlin said.

Norbert nodded. "Merlin moves his hands in a hypnotic pattern as he crafts a light spell before the party. The shadows slowly peel away from the stone walls, revealing an enormous, semi-translucent, pink-purple mound in the middle of the room.”

"I'd like to inspect that… thing," Magica said, already rolling for it. “A... zero?!" Gasps around the table. “Oh, but it’s a four with the modifier!”

"Correction, Magica: A NATURAL zero, which," Norbert explained for Grumble's benefit, "is the worst possible roll in D in D. Whereas a natural twenty means phenomenal luck, a natural zero means the exact opposite: extraordinarily rotten luck... regardless of modifiers." He paused to think while the table waited with bated breath.

"Magica inspects the mound, but unbeknownst to her, the corner of her robes brushes against it. With a SCHLURP, she is instantly sucked inside the mound and held there as if encased within jelly.”

The table erupted into chaos as they debated how to free the Healer, but Norbert chuckled—innocently at first but soon devolving into maniacal cackling. The players, suspicious, fell silent. “Now, just what is so funny?” Sergeant Brave demanded.

Norbert sighed, pleased. “You didn’t let me finish. Before any of you can react, the mound ripples, groans, and turns until it faces the party. Merlin’s light reveals that it’s a giant Blobikins before you, and floating within its gelatinous insides among the debris are not one, but two familiar figures: Magica… and King Hagan.”

As the table digested this information, Norbert continued. “The Blobikins, disturbed from its slumber, roars. I’d like everyone to roll for initiative and ready themselves for battle...”

Marty looked at Paddyfoot's character sheet to determine his options. "I draw my Earth Faerie Bow and fire it at the Blobikins." He grabbed a die to determine the inflicted damage.

"Not so fast!" Norbert interrupted. "Blobikins absorbs the arrow, which remains suspended in the creature's translucent body."

"I should have seen that coming," Marty mumbled.

Alice sat up and began her turn. "I draw my weapon," she said while checking over Sergeant Brave's character sheet. "It is a Medieval Sword, which uses two six-sided die to determine damage." She rolled the two dice and landed on a four and a six. She then added her strength modifier and declared, "I hit 15 points of damage!"

"Actually," Norbert corrected, "The Blobikins is weak to swords, so you hit 30 points of damage, cutting it in half right down the middle!"

The party cheered.

"...However," Norbert continued, "Each half of the Blobikins grows a second eye, creating TWO Blobikins."

The party gasped in horror.

Norbert continued, "One Blobikins contains Magica, and the other contains King Hagan. What is your next move, Paddyfoot?"...

How will this story end?

“I agree,” said Sergeant Brave. “We need to get them out without destroying the Blobikins.”

Magica sat up straight in her chair, still a little indignant about her mishap from earlier. “If it is holding them, then it must be gripping them with its structure. If we weaken the entire creature at once, then it might release them.”

Merlin agreed. “A spell that hits the entire area. Something that disrupts magical cohesion.”

Grumble perked up. “I can help with that! I like to play songs to focus on everyone’s timing.”

“Performace check,” Norbert gestured grandly.

The dice rolled…

“Eighteen!” Tom exclaimed. He was really surprised at himself.

Norbert smiled. “Your music echoes through the dungeon sounding steady, rhythmic, and heroic. The party is flowing beautifully. Everyone gains a bonus to their next action.”

“Now,” Merlin said, already rolling. “I send forth a ripple of unraveling magic over the two Blobikins.” The dice clattered. “Seventeen.”

“A flicker of light dances across the room. Both creatures ripple violently with their forms losing stability,” Norbert stated.

Sergeant Brave did not even hesitate. “I am not attacking to cut. I am using the flat of my blade to push and break their balance.” She rolled. “Fifteen.”

“I am alright and I heal myself anyway,” Larry announced.

Paddyfoot grabbed his dice. “I charge towards the second one and pull King Hagan out while it’s unstable!” The dice spins. “Twenty.”

Norbert laughed. “With perfect timing, Paddyfoot dives toward the King grabbing him by the arm and setting him free just as the Blobikins collapses into a puddle.”

“The chamber goes silent. Both creatures have dissolved. Magica stands up safely. King Hagan is finally free.” Norbert said.

“The King fixes his robes and thanks your party with his deepest gratitude.” “Brave heroes,” he says, “it was wisdom, teamwork, and courage that saved Brightvale today. You all have shown that you are worthy guardians of knowledge and hope.”

“Do we get… you know… treasure?” Grumble says curiously.

Norbert scans his notes. “Yes. Each of you receive 150 gold, a Brightvale Medal of Honour, and enough experience to level up.”

“Level two!” Merlin dances with excitement.

“I think I would like new abilities,” Paddyfoot says.

“I want better armour,” Sergeant Brave added.

“I want more songs,” Grumble said pleasingly.

Norbert closed his Campaign Master folder and waited for the excitement to settle down. “And that is the successful conclusion of your first Draiks in Dungeon campaign.”

“That was a blast,” Alice said happily.

“I still cannot believe that I rolled twenty,” Marty added.

“I did not even understand the game at first but now I love it,” Tom stated.

Norbert glanced around at the group seeing how happy everyone was. “Well done everyone. You worked together, stayed creative, and saved the day.” He gathered the figurines and carefully placed them back in their box.

With that, the first meeting of the Neopia Central Draiks in Dungeons Club came to a beautiful and triumphant end.

The End.