Immersive Ink

Good plan! Our heroes decide to deal with the puffballs from a distance, to eliminate them as a future hazard. A few well-placed sling shots (I won't require an attack roll) set off a chain reaction. Soon the puffballs are defused, and the area marked in red on the map above is choked with a cloud of spores.

What next, Hobbets?

Let's head to the west wall of the cave. Willie is curious to see what the new-comers make of it.

"Looks like we can enter that passage, two by two," Noh says to the others, but he'll follow the others toward the west. Do the spores or whatever from the red puffballs go airborne as we walk through them? Do they cling to the soles of our feet? "Wish I had brought some glass vials to take specimens," Noh muses as he looks down.

Dame Simonetta examines the spore cloud (from afar) before following Willie. Does the cloud rise all the way up to the ceiling before settling back down to ground level? If so, she'll watch carefully for any shapes falling down from the ceiling.

Dougal is ready to move forward. He falls in line with the standard marching order.

Is anybody else getting hungry? Tet asks hopefully.

Don't imagine the ripe puffballs bursting open; rather, the spores 'puff' up through a circular opening on top, like a belly button or the blowhole of a whale. The leathery husks of the spent puffballs are left behind like deflated footballs, and it looks like it would be easier to move north to the chasm area, if our heroes wanted to check it out. The spores are brown in color and have a dry, powdery texture. The spore cloud puffs about 10-30' in the air, then the spores lose their energy and float gently in the cavern's air currents. Our Hobbet Heroes can see their torchlight reflecting back off the spores, giving a certain three-dimensionality to their understanding of the cavern ecosystem. Many of the spores waft slowly toward the north, suggesting air flow that keeps these caverns well ventilated. Indeed, as the spores move north, they are drawn upward and out of sight, suggesting that the chasm might have a chimney effect. A few of the spores drift casually toward the party, but they don't seem dangerous or threatening. Noh allows a few of the spores to settle on his sleeve like snowflakes so he can take a closer look. All of his senses indicate that, like surface puffballs, this cavern variety is not poisonous (though if someone took a direct puff to the face they might have a sneezing and coughing fit).

Tet of course is a connoissoir of surface-variety puffballs, when they are young and firm-fleshed. They do make him gassy when consumed raw; better off cooked. A classic recipe is to slice them and fry them on both sides. Another good one is to cut them in cubes, put them on a skewer, marinate them, and grill them (optionally with cubes of meat and/or veggies).

Our heroes are ever-vigilant for the return of Spider-Goat. I should note that Carc has calmed down significantly, though he's definitely having a pretty strange morning for a raven.

To the west there are still some faint traces of the First Adventure's path, almost obscured by the quick-growing puffballs. The overgrown path leads due west to the western cavern wall. There is a smooth patch in the stone, the rough shape and size of a Hobbet-sized door, with no keyhole, knob, or knocker.

Tet is almost certain there's a secret door here. (I won't make him roll for it.) But how to open it?

When Tet speaks the words "Ere, does that there look a bit queer to you lot?" he hears a funny noise from inside the door: it's a faint clicking and whirring sound, kind of like a clockwork mechanism. Nothing else happens.

"It's probably waiting for the correct password to be spoken." Dame Simonetta muses aloud."'Open Sesame'? 'Friend'? ... 'Johnnycakes'?"