Last night’s adventure began with the triumphant unveiling of Dave’s hard-won renovations at our humble “SpiderHouse.” Through sheer force of will—and, let’s be honest, some questionable inventory management lectures—Dave had turned our base into a true landmark. With glow pillars “visible from space” and a strict chest organization system, no item would again face the indignity of landing in the wrong blue (magic) chest. Not on Dave’s watch, anyway. As for Craig, well, the more rules there are, the more creatively he finds ways to “enhance” the base.
Case in point: his rebellious homage to Led Zeppelin with a “Stairway to Heaven.” Surprisingly, it was no slipshod job. The staircase gleamed with glow bricks on either side, built faster than anyone could critique its purpose—or lack thereof. We were almost impressed.
As we gathered to take in Dave’s remodeled fortress and upgraded to legendary gliders, Zaph dropped the night’s first real bombshell: he wouldn’t be sticking around. An unexpected illness had cut his session short, taking our best-laid plans down with it. Adjustments were made on the fly; we scrapped any high-risk missions (no shroud mushrooms for us) and set our sights on simpler objectives, where the odds of Craig lighting himself on fire might be slightly lower.
To the Minty Mushrooms… (Craig, It’s the Mushroom Waypoint)
Our next goal was upgrading the Flame Altar, requiring a jaunt to the Minty Mushroom waypoint. Despite specific directions, Craig predictably went the wrong way, showing up at the fast travel tower instead. The Minty Mushrooms held all the chaotic charm they usually do, with plenty of deadly red mushrooms for Craig to “demonstrate” his new leap ability—right into a cloud of poison breath. As he coughed up what was left of his lungs, we followed Dave’s advice to fight from a “safer distance.” Safer for everyone except Craig, that is.
The Lava Basement & Quest Cleanup
With our Flame Altar newly leveled, we turned to the cluttered mess of our quest logs. First stop: a flooded basement in Pike’s Reach. Because, naturally, it’s not enough that it’s a basement—it’s a lava basement. Several heroic attempts later (and a few Craig fatalities), we uncovered a buried chest. What treasures did it yield? More castle building blocks, in case our spirits weren’t already dampened enough by the lava.
The Case of the Dragon Monument
As we ventured on, we came across a dragon monument that looked eerily like the classic Dungeons & Dragons artwork Myles had been reminiscing about. When Dave suggested the “minor adjustment” of removing the dragon’s eyes, Myles promptly vetoed, citing old tales of dragon wrath. We continued on, content to leave the dragon’s dignity (and eyeballs) intact.
Lost, Lava, and Left-Hand Rules
Our evening ended with a half-hour debate about how to reach the next waypoint in an impassable mountainous shroud. Dave’s plan, which sounded great on paper, guided us to a tunnel that eventually led back into the shroud bowl from Kappa—the exact opposite direction we’d hoped. After a quick SpiderHouse resupply (chamomile tea included), we pressed on with the old “left-hand rule.” Craig kept us grounded with his running commentary: “We’re lost, this is the same spot, are we there yet?”
After an impressive scramble and one misplaced fast travel point, we finally reached an old mine… just in time to be “rewarded” with yet another set of castle blocks. Nothing says heroism quite like a glorified brick collection.
Final Glide & Towering Views
In a last dash of exploration, we took a scenic glide over the hills, marveling at the view while quietly noting how we could’ve taken a far easier route. But where’s the adventure in that?
