Critical Role: Call of the Netherdeep

Putting Away the Pies

It costs 5 sp to enter this contest. On Agathe's signal, everyone seated at the platform can begin eating. The pies taste great, the meat seasoned to perfection and the crusts light and fluffy. Of course, there's not much chance to savor the flavor of the pies when the goal is to put away as many of them as possible.

All contestants can easily eat their first pie, requiring no check. Eating a second pie requires a successful DC 8 Constitution check. For every pie after the second, the DC increases by 2. The person who eats the most pies before failing a check is the winner (ties are possible). A contestant whose check fails is too full to continue eating and must make a DC 15 Constitution saving throw. On a failed save, the contestant becomes poisoned for 1 hour and feels queasy.

Meeting Irvan

Irvan sits next to one of the characters during the contest. If they speak to him before the contest begins, he merely wishes the character good luck. He talks more after the contest.

Rival Impressions

Win or lose, Irvan is friendly toward characters who competed in the contest. His friendliness evaporates quickly if a character insults his scruffy and adolescent appearance.

As a new member of his adventuring party, Irvan isn't keen on revealing that he's part of a group. But he does invite any of the characters that he's friendly with to join him for the festival's closing ceremony at sunset.

Treasure

Each winner of this contest receives a tin medal of the meat pie (see appendix B) shaped like—you guessed it—a meat pie.

Win or lose, a character can't compete in this contest again until they complete a long rest.

[image: Agathe Silverspoon makes the best meat pies in Jigow]

Studying the Maze

A character can study the maze from the outside and make a DC 14 Intelligence (Investigation) check. If this check succeeds, the character has advantage on the check made to navigate the maze.

Entering the Maze

It costs 3 sp to participate in this challenge. When a character enters the maze, they must make a DC 14 Wisdom (Survival) check to try to find the correct path. On a success, the character traverses the maze in one shot and emerges victorious on the other side.

On a failed check, the character gets lost and ends up in one of the maze's dead ends. A lost character can make a DC 18 Dexterity (Stealth) check to try to backtrack quickly out of the dead end, avoiding Sharpwatch's notice on a success; the character can then make another Wisdom (Survival) check to navigate the maze. If either of these checks is a failure, Sharpwatch swoops down and plucks the character from the maze, depositing them outside.

A character can try the maze as many times as they would like, paying the 3 sp entrance fee each time.

Meeting Maggie and Dermot

After the event, Maggie approaches a character who successfully navigated the maze and congratulates them. Dermot follows up, introducing himself and asking if the characters can help him with a small task:

[image: Medal of the Maze]

Ayo Jabe can be found competing in area J3.

Rival Impressions

Dermot thinks the best of people and is friendly toward anyone who encourages him to walk the maze or who backs him up by saying he should sit it out. Both Dermot and Maggie are hostile toward characters who insult them—especially if anyone makes fun of the fact that Maggie is too big to navigate the maze or implies that she lacks insight because she's a musclebound ogre.

Treasure

Characters who complete the maze are awarded a medal of the maze (see appendix B) made of smooth driftwood, hung on a piece of rough twine. A labyrinthine pattern has been carved into the front of the medal.

Participating in the Challenge

Entering this contest costs 5 sp. The goal of this challenge is to swim upstream through the rushing waters of the Ifolon to reach a rusted spear sticking out of a rotten wooden post, then bring the spear back to the dock.

Only one of the characters can participate in this challenge. If multiple characters from the party want to take part, anyone after the first must make a DC 14 Charisma (Deception) check. A character who succeeds on this check can compete; those who fail the check are ejected from the pier by Omo.

Other than Ayo, the contestants are a lanky male orc scout, a broad-shouldered female human thug, and a surly male goblin. These nonplayer characters have the following modifiers to their Strength (Athletics) checks, which come into play during the swimming contest:

• Ayo Jabe:. athletics 4
• Male Orc:. athletics 0
• Female Human:. athletics 2
• Male Goblin:. athletics -1

Race for the Spear

On Omo's mark, the contestants plunge into the water and begin swimming. Competitors roll initiative when they dive into the water, with all participants expected to use the Dash action every round. Any contestant who moves more than 30 feet on their turn must make a DC 13 Strength (Athletics) check at the end of that turn. On a failed check, the contestant gains 1 level of exhaustion and is pushed 15 feet downstream as they are pummeled by the current.

The distance from the pier to the spear is 75 feet, and it takes an action to wrench the spear free. A character can pull the spear out of another contestant's hands by swimming to within 5 feet of them and succeeding on a Strength check with a DC equal to 10 + the other contestant's Strength modifier. Whoever returns the spear to Omo is the winner.

Danger from Below

After the spear is pulled from the rotten post, two Ifolon striped sharks (use the reef shark stat block) emerge from the depths of the river. Characters who have a passive Wisdom (Perception) score of 13 or higher notice the water churning more severely as the sharks, riled up by the antics of the swimmers, rise to feed.

Roll initiative for the sharks. They attack contest participants indiscriminately, interested in scoring what they think is an easy meal. A shark tries to flee when it has been reduced to 11 hit points or fewer. Ayo doesn't waste time fighting the sharks; her only goal is to reach the finish line (with the spear, if she isn't already holding it). The other contestants in the water try to fend off the sharks.

Meeting Ayo and Galsariad

Prior to the challenge, Ayo is focused on the race and politely brushes off any attempt at conversation. Once the characters are safe and sound on the pier after the race, she and Galsariad approach them.

Rival Impressions

Ayo is impressed more by courage and determination than by success. If a character participated in the contest but failed to recover the spear, she claps that character on the shoulder with a crooked grin on her face and says, "I've never seen anyone give it their all like that before. 'Cept for myself, I mean." She goes on to tell the character that she has assembled an adventuring party, and that she'd like to introduce everyone after the festival's closing ceremony at sundown.

Ayo looks poorly on a character who broke the rules of the contest to participate. Galsariad, however, quietly smiles and inclines his head at that character, impressed by their cunning.

Treasure

Omo awards the winner a medal of the conch (see appendix B) made of sea glass that has been magically crafted into the shape of a conch shell.

Contest Rules

In any arm-wrestling match, have both contestants make a Strength (Athletics) check with a DC equal to 10 + the other contestant's Strength modifier. If one contestant succeeds and the other fails, the one who succeeded wins the match. Repeat the checks as needed until one contestant fails and the other succeeds.

A character who loses a match and wants to try again must first succeed on a DC 15 Charisma (Deception or Persuasion) check. On a failed check, the character is laughed away by the crowd. If a character loses to the same foe twice, that contestant declines any further challenges from that character.

Betting

A character can place a bet with Vars by handing him 5 sp and declaring who they think will win the next match. A character whose choice wins the match receives 9 sp, and Vars pockets 1 sp.

Treasure

Vars hands anyone who bests Maryl and Maggie a medal of muscle (see appendix B) made of ebony and shaped like a flexing arm. If one stares at it for long enough, the muscles appear to bulge.

Harvesting the Rice

A team of two is required to participate in this contest, and there is no entry fee. If a character needs a partner, Irvan grudgingly volunteers to be their teammate for the event. When a team enters the contest, they are asked to designate which is the cutter (who cuts the stalks down) and which is the gatherer (who gathers the stalks and prepares them for drying). Zag provides the cutter with a sickle before Beetle directs the teams to the paddies and asks them to await the signal to start.

Each team is responsible for a 20-foot-long, 5-foot-wide strip of a paddy. On Beetle's signal, the teams race to successfully harvest their strip. Aside from the characters, two other teams are competing in this race: an imposing female orc and her rambunctious son (who uses the commoner stat block); and a pair of drow siblings, who wear broad-brimmed straw hats and constantly bicker with each other. These teams have the following modifiers to their Strength (Athletics) and Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) checks, which come into play during the contest:

Orc Team

Athletics athletics 3, Sleight of Hand sleight_of_hand 0

Drow Team

Athletics athletics 0, Sleight of Hand sleight_of_hand 2

Treasure

Beetle and Zag award each member of the winning team a copper medal of the wetlands (see appendix B) engraved with a sheaf of rice, hung on a necklace woven of reeds.

Maneuvering the Herd

Once all the contestants are seated on their tortoises, Adan climbs onto the back of a larger tortoise outside the paddock. With a yell and a hand signal, Adan begins to lead the group of tortoises out of the paddock.

To successfully maneuver a tortoise to the destination, a character must make three successful Wisdom (Animal Handling) checks. The DC for these checks begins at 12 and increases by 1 for each check thereafter. On a failed check, the tortoise tries to buck the character from its back. The character must succeed on a DC 13 Dexterity saving throw or fall from the tortoise and take 3 (1d6) bludgeoning damage. On a successful check, the character doesn't fall and can try to maneuver the tortoise again.

After a failed saving throw, a character can mount their tortoise by succeeding on a DC 15 Dexterity (Acrobatics) check. If this check fails, the belligerent tortoise makes a Bite attack against the character. Once mounted on the tortoise again, a character can continue trying to move the tortoise along by making another Wisdom (Animal Handling) check as described above.

If a tortoise is charmed by an animal friendship spell or a similar effect, Wisdom (Animal Handling) checks to guide it are made with advantage, and it won't buck its handler on a failed check.

Treasure

Once a tortoise reaches its destination, Adan awards its rider a medal of the horizonback (see appendix B).

No two medals awarded from this contest look the same. Each one appears to be made from some different part of a tortoise: a piece of shell, a claw, or a tooth. Adan assures the characters that these medals were made from tortoises that died naturally.

Table 1: The Box's Riddle

On this table are a locked wooden box and four metal keys. On a placard beside the box is written the following riddle in Common:

A character who inspects the keys can see that each is made of a different metal—one bronze, one copper, one silver, and one gold. Close examination of the box reveals that its lock is shaped like a dragon with a fluted crest, and the edges of the box are decorated with engravings of pearls and shells.

The lock's shape and sea-themed decorations are clues that suggest a bronze dragon—and thus, it's the bronze key that opens the lock. A character who inserts the incorrect key or tries to pick the lock must succeed on a DC 16 Dexterity saving throw or take 2 (1d4) lightning damage as the lock emits an electric shock.

A character can make a DC 10 Intelligence check to recognize that the metallic hues of the keys and the first two lines of the riddle are talking about not just metals but also types of metallic dragons. A character who succeeds on a DC 13 Intelligence (Arcana or History) check recognizes the shape of the dragon lock or the box's aquatic decorations as indicative of a bronze dragon; if a character saw someone get shocked by lightning after an incorrect guess, the DC for this check is reduced to 11.

Table 2: The Star Map's Riddle

The star map resting on this table depicts the moons and constellations visible in the Exandrian night sky, accompanied by the following riddle in Common:

To answer the riddle, a character must identify the "birds" of the riddle and point them out on the star map. The answer is the twin moons of Exandria, Catha and Ruidus.

A character who succeeds on a DC 13 Intelligence (History or Religion) check recalls the stories regarding Exandria's moons, recognizing the second line as referring to the superstitions surrounding Ruidus and the last line as referring to the divine portfolio of Sehanine the Moon Weaver. A character who succeeds on a DC 11 Wisdom (Perception) check determines that there is only one red object on the star map—Ruidus.

Table 3: The Bottles' Riddle

On this table is a row of seven small bottles filled with colored liquids, and the following riddle in Common:

The bottles, numbered from left to right, have the following contents:

• Bottle 1.. This purple bottle is filled with berry juice.
• Bottle 2.. This green bottle is filled with blight brew. A character who sips from this bottle must succeed on a DC 10 Constitution saving throw or become poisoned for 1 minute, spending the time retching.
• Bottle 3.. This sky-blue bottle is filled with berry juice.
• Bottle 4.. This white bottle is filled with overwhelmingly spicy pepper oil. A character who sips from this bottle must succeed on a DC 10 Constitution saving throw or take 1 fire damage from the spice.
• Bottle 5.. This purple bottle is filled with a liquid known in Jigow as glow potion. A character who drinks from this bottle feels warmth settle in their stomach as their skin emits dim silvery light out to a range of 5 feet for 1 minute.
• Bottle 6.. This green bottle is filled with blight brew, just like bottle 2.
• Bottle 7.. This red bottle is filled with apple juice.

A character must drink from the correct bottle to win, and anyone who attempts the challenge has only two chances to guess correctly. If someone guesses incorrectly twice, they fail this riddle. Bottle 5, containing the glow potion, is the correct bottle.

A character who succeeds on a DC 12 Intelligence check comes to one of the following conclusions:

• Bottles 2 and 6 are both directly to the right of a purple bottle and thus must contain blight brew.
• Bottles 2, 4, and 6—the "even" ones—should be avoided, as they hold only "pain."
• If the sky-blue bottle leaves a "stain," it must be harmless juice, but not the correct answer.
• The first and last bottles must also be juice, as they are "tasty" but won't win the riddle.

Characters can make multiple Intelligence checks to gain multiple hints, but a character who fails a check can't make another until they drink from a bottle.

A detect magic spell or similar effect also reveals the fifth bottle to be the only one containing magical liquid.

Meeting Galsariad

If the characters didn't meet him at the Ifolon Plunge in x, Galsariad Ardyth approaches the characters after they're done with this challenge, win or lose.

Rival Impressions

Unless the characters solve each riddle on the first try, Galsariad brusquely brushes past them, chuckling, "Better luck next time." Nonetheless, he is impressed by characters who display a ruthless drive to succeed. If this is the case, he inclines his head and says, "Your cunning is a cut above that of everyone else in this backwater. Do you plan on participating in the grand finale at sundown? I'd be interested in testing my wits against you."

Treasure

If a character answers at least two of the riddles correctly, Elder Colbu Kaz awards that character a medal of wit (see appendix B), which is sculpted and painted to look like the head of a fox.

Race Progression

It takes the characters 1 round to dive into the water and traverse this room.

Race Progression

If the group check is successful, it takes the characters 1 round to traverse the room; otherwise, it takes 2 rounds.

Race Progression

If the characters dawdled while choosing which path to take, it takes them 2 rounds to traverse the room; otherwise, it takes them 1 round.

Algae

A character can harvest some of the algae from the cavern walls with a successful DC 11 Intelligence (Nature) or Wisdom (Survival) check. A harvested patch of algae can be used as a portable light source, shedding dim light in a 10-foot radius. Algae removed from the water dies and ceases to glow after 1 hour.

Race Progression

It takes at least 2 rounds to traverse this chamber, plus the number of rounds it takes for characters who are caught in the ghostgrass to get free. If any characters stopped to harvest algae, add 1 round to the total.

Hidden Cave

A character who explores this cave discovers a vial containing a potion of healing and a soggy but usable spell scroll of thunderwave.

Race Progression

It takes at least 2 rounds to traverse the room. If no character succeeded on the check to locate the exit, add 2 rounds to the total. If a character stopped to search the hidden cave, add 1 round to the total.

Race Progression

It takes at least 1 round to traverse this chamber. Keep track of how many rounds of combat the party spends fighting the swarm, and add that number of rounds to the total.

Treasure

Once the octopus is defeated, a character who searches the bottom of the pit finds 57 sp and a pouch containing dust of dryness in the form of eight marble-sized pellets that have absorbed hundreds of gallons of water. When a pellet is smashed, the act releases a 15-foot cube of water.

Race Progression

It takes at least 1 round to traverse this chamber. Keep track of how many rounds the party spends fighting the octopus and add that number to the total. If one or more characters take the time to search the pit, add 1 round to the total.

[image: A giant octopus waits to ambush prey in the depths of the Emerald Grotto]

Tablet

A detect magic spell reveals that the tablet radiates an aura of evocation magic. The tablet has AC 15, 10 hit points, and immunity to poison and psychic damage. Destroying the tablet causes the current to subside, allowing creatures to travel through the tunnel without resistance.

Race Progression

Count the number of rounds it takes for the characters to reach area E9 by swimming against the current. If the characters destroy the tablet, they can swim the tunnel's length in 2 rounds.

Concealed Cave

A character who searches this cave finds three potions of healing, likely stashed here by a hopeful contestant planning to gain an advantage in this race.

Race Progression

It takes at least 1 round to traverse the room and 1 round to find the eastern exit (or 2 rounds if no character succeeded on a check to locate the exit). If a character stopped to search the concealed cave, add 1 round to the total.

Emerald Eye

A druid of Jigow cast animal friendship on the shark earlier today and tied the Emerald Eye around its body, then made a speedy getaway. A character can cut the amulet free by attacking the rope around the shark instead of the shark itself. The rope has AC 17 and 5 hit points. It can be removed as an action if the shark is killed or incapacitated. The amulet, which is made of gold and emeralds, is worth 500 gp—though no one in Jigow will buy it, since it must be returned the town elders once the contest is completed.

Moonshark's Defeat

When the shark is reduced to 0 hit points, it thrashes about in its death throes and crashes into the stone pillar in the south part of the room, which tumbles into the south wall and cracks it open. Read:

The newly opened passage (area E11) leads to a hidden chamber (area E12).

Disputing Destiny

If Ayo or another one of the rivals touched the Jewel of Three Prayers, they are the recipients of the vision instead. The rivals fall unconscious for 1 minute, and it is up to the characters to decide what to do with them. In this scenario, which is examined further in chapter 2, the rivals are the "heroes" of the story, and the characters must decide if they want to aid their rivals or take back the jewel and claim their own heroic destiny.

[image: A spectral figure not seen in ages sets the adventurers on a quest that could change the fate of the world]