Dungeons & Dragons Animated Series Ep. 15

Let's continue going through the old '80's D&D cartoon. This one is really good.

Check out the previous episode recaps: 

Part One (Episodes 1-6)
Part Two (Episodes 7-13)
Episode 14
Episode 15
Episode 16
Episode 17
Episode 18
Episode 19
Episode 20
Episode 21
Episode 22
Episode 23
Episode 24
Episode 25
Episode 26
Episode 27
Episode 28

Episode 15 - The Treasure of Tardos

Bobby is giving Uni a bath in the river, and Eric is making fun of him. Then, a sea monster emerges from the extremely shallow river. The roar of some beast in the distance causes it to flee.

Dungeon Master is here. He warns the group that the beast they just heard could destroy the realm. It's Demodragon! Demo was statted out in a Dragon Magazine issue during the 3rd edition days, I think.

The DM hands the heroes a map and tells the group to go to Tardos Keep and 'help the one who stands against you.' The map depicts Tardos Keep, which is beyond the Dustlands.

The adventurers pass through the Dustlands without incident (except for a bit of sneezing) and arrive at Tardos Keep. 

Camped outside is a huge band of orcs who apparently serve Venger. Yep, shadow demon is among them. Uni rolls a one on her stealth check and the orcs chase the heroes.  

Venger's here too. Apparently there are people in the keep. They let the adventurers inside.

Queen Sulenara explains to the group that Venger wants the treasure of Tardos, but they have so far successfully kept him from entering the keep.

Outside, Venger reveals that he has captured Demodragon, who is bound by magic chains. He unleashes it on the keep.

Demodragon has two heads - one is red, the other blue. It fires both breath weapons (fire and ice) at the massive front doors, shattering them.

Hank's bow that can do just about anything fires arrows that wrap around Demodragon's legs, immobilizing it. Then Bobby drops it with a single smash of the club to the ground.

Venger fires bolts of energy at the ground, as Demodragon gets up. Demodragon's back tentacles snatch the magic items from the heroes. Venger wants the weapons, but Demo attacks him. Their fight spills into the Dustlands, away from Tardos Keep.

What is the Treasure of Tardos? Dragonbane: The only known crop of a rare herb that can render the mightiest dragon helpless.

Venger wants dragonbane so that he can defeat Tiamat.

The denizens of Tardos stay here solely to guard the dragonbane. The rest of the people who once lived in Tardos Keep moved far away.

The man who tends the garden gives Uni a wreath to wear around her neck. It will give her luck (or lice). We the viewers see that this old fellow is actually... Dungeon Master. I don't remember him directly interfering like this before. Maybe he forgot to tell them something in the opening boxed text.

Thinking about what Dungeon Mater told them, the heroes decide that they need to help Venger. They slip out of the keep at night.

I love the way the Realm looks. It doesn't have one moon. It has a big pile of them.

Venger agrees to the deal. He gives the group a magic talisman, which can be used against Demodragon.

It turns out that the talisman fires a ray but does nothing. Hank destroys it, which causes a flash of light that blinds both heads of Demodragon, but only for a moment. It grabs Uni and the wreath of dragonsbane does its thing - Demodragon is covered in shimmering light, then falls into nothing.

The group gets their magic items back. Shadow Demon and a band of orcs demand the magic items. Venger decides to let the group go because they helped him.

The heroes walk back to Tardos Keep, talking about how evil Venger is. Dungeon Master watches them from a distance, tears in his eyes, and says aloud that once, there was good in Venger. "Everyone makes mistakes. Venger was mine."

I wonder if maybe Dungeon Master was hoping that Venger wouldn't betray the group with the use of the talisman?

I really like this episode a lot. There's some useful ideas. First, you've got the dragonbane, which I guess you could use in your game, but it seems like it would get out of control really quickly. Heroes selling it for cast sums, committing dragon genocide.

One good twist might be to have villains use it to kill good dragons (gold, silver, etc). Good dragons would fear dragonbane as much as evil dragons, right? They might even hire people to burn all of it.

The other concept I really like is that of a keep surrounded by enemies that can't get in. The heroes would have to figure a way to get in without being detected by the horde outside.

Stuff that Presto's Hat Does:

39. Summon marbles, causing orcs to trip and fall down.

Hank's Bow Can:

40. Have an arrow be deflected by Venger.
41. tie up Demodragon's feet, immobilizing it.
42. Fire an arrow that Venger actually catches, causing it to disappear.