The Highlands Oddities

Opening:

The session opens at an Academy. A man asks Green if he can help them with anything. Green continues shushing him as he's trying to help. The man eventually mentions the store doesn't often get his kind in the store. Green shoots back questioning him. The man clarifies they don't see spellcasters. Green asks so what? Green then takes items he'd like off the shelf, and checks out normally.

The Pizza Party makes their way into the High Grounds Mall. The convenience store is the only store open right now and inside is a customer who picks up a single pack of Ramen, heads to check-out, and drops 15 chocolate bars, saying "Just what I needed!"

Circeth, Nathan, and Usagi join. A Dwarf in a full pinstripe suit inspects the party and seems unimpressed.

Nathan answers for the group, asking if there was a problem. Green joins in a bulletproof vest and football kneepads. He tells the dwarf not to worry about it.

Nathan asks if the person checking out was the problem. The dwarf replies yes, and that this problem has been happening for a few days now.

A blond, buff human with long beard, Abraham Lincoln hair and hat greets Circeth after they ask about spellcasters. He introduces him as Barnabus James the 4th. He introduces himself as part of the Caster society.

Barnabus tries to ritual cast detect magic but takes too long. Green casts detect magic on the man who checked out, and notes he is entirely made of magic.

Green eventually kicks Barnabus's ritual circle, dismissing it.

Circeth also casts Detect Magic, noting that their suspicion is correct and these beings are constructs.

Usagi asks if this is simulated capitalism. Nathan responds saying it wasn't a correct simulation. Circeth suggests that there may be a person who cloned themselves. Though they struggle to understand why.

Usagi suggests that it doesn't make sense, even if it were a way Nathan suggests there's a better way to inflate sales, like suggestion or charm.

Circeth instructs Barnabus to trail the person, to see if they go to the caster. Barnabus wants a favour in return for his cooperation -- for Circeth to try to convince green to rejoin the society.

Nathan calls Barnabus out for being full of shit, saying that in his business, if you want something done right, you do it yourself. Nathan said he was going to tail one of the constructs.

Barnabus leaves in a huff, saying he's decided he's going to try and take the job from under the party.

Usagi sees an advertisement for an upcoming restaurant "Leastburger, by Mr Least"

Nathan sees another NPC, turning a bar of soap into boxes of cereal. The NPC swipes soap off the shelf and dumps the bag on the checkout lane, it turns into 15 boxes of cereal.

Circeth tails green, not attempting to hide. They inform him about Barnabus's proposition. Green retorts he already knew what Barnabus wanted the moment he set eyes on him.

The scene swaps back to Nathan and Usagi, who are following the man who converted soap to cereal. He goes from store to store converting item to item without rhyme or reason.

Usagi attempts to talk to the man while Nathan mulls over information. The man doesn't make sense, Usagi asks what he's doing, but the man only responds "Just what I needed!", when asked what he needed, he responds "Exactly what I was looking for."

This continues for a few loops before the man reaches into his bag and pulls out a knife, and swings it at Usagi, saying "I think I'll use my credit card!" He misses and tries to go for another as Nathan approaches. Nathan tries to shoot, but misses. Usagi shoots her crossbow and hits. The construct fades and the bag fades with it.

Usagi wonders if the original items it used were fake. Nathan finds the bars of soap from the first store and casts Detect Magic to analyze the soap -- he notes they're all completely normal. Making him think that this may be some kind of shoplifting scheme.

Circeth has an idea -- casting moonbeam on one of them to force a transformation. The moonbeam hits, but the construct saves from being transformed. The construct is destroyed, but this one's bag remains. Nathan takes it and looks inside. He sees two eyes looking back. He immediately tries to close the bag, doing so just in time, but the creature inside is not happy about it. Nathan mentions there's something inside. Nathan, Usagi, and Circeth discuss what to do, deciding to burn the bag.

The bag threatens to explode -- and does, sending Nathan and Usagi flying as a mountain of products drop on them, knocking the both of them prone. It attacks Nathan, nearly killing him. Nathan disengages and attempts to escape, making it most of the way out of the pile. Usagi manages to make her way completely out of the pile as well.

Usagi opts to cast sanctuary on Nathan. Circeth uses their opportunity attack to hit the beast. Nathan then pulls away to get out of the pile completely. After he does so, the pile lights on fire, the bag-man included as Green shows up, his bong-staff has some smoke flowing out of it.

Circeth swings at the monster, and Usagi shoots at it as well. Just as Usagi finishes, a barrage of magic missiles flies in at the monster, killing it -- Barnabus had stolen the kill. A coin much like the one from the Ikea dropped out of the bag man's body. Nathan notices that Barnabus clocks it, and tries to reach for it himself.

Nathan unfortunately doesn't get it before Barnabus's Mage Hand. The group is then taunted and left with an "old enemy" as a large creature with a pizza oven for a chest and a space-marine like helmet charges through a wall, and then towards the group.