A question for the fen.

[kengr]

You are wandering through the dealer room at a medium to large convention (Westercon, Baycon, that sort of thing).

There's a table with a couple of people wearing some pretty good spacesuit outfits, complete with mirrored helmets. Even have "translators" with an appropriately "computer" voice.

They're selling toy radio controlled flying saucers. They zip around nicely, making a humming noise much like the cars in the Jetsons.

They want $50 for them.

What do you do?

Comments

[draxenn.livejournal.com]

ok.
First I cast detect magic. Is the saucer magical?
No?
I cast detect evil. Is it evil?
No?
I'll throw a rock at it. Does it see me now?
No?
hmm..
I shoot an arrow at it. Does it see me now?
No?
...
I hit it with my longsword. Does it see me?
No? Aww, but it's a +4 longsword...

[kengr]

Con security (in this case a mix of the Dorsai Very Irregulars and the oinfamoius Klingon Diplomatic Corps) hauls you off for violating the weapons policy.

Too late...

[seawasp]

... you've awakened it. It runs after you and eats you.

Re: Too late...

[draxenn.livejournal.com]

Oh poop.
I'll start rerolling a new character.
=D

Re: Too late...

[kengr]

Ahem. I'm running this. Be nice and go play with Virigar or something. :-)

Re: Too late...

[seawasp]

*Sigh*

Apparently you know not the story of Eric and the Dread Gazebo, else you would have recognized what we were doing.

Re: Too late...

[kengr]

I'm familiar with that story. But this didn't trip that memory. And the "it runs after you and eats you" rather insured that it wouldn't.

Could I interest you in some mutant tribbles? These ones are omnivorous. And have teeth. (Cue "Little Fuzzy Animals" :-)

Why...

[seawasp]

... wouldn't that line trip you on it? That's the way Eric's encounter with the Dread Gazebo ends. "Too late, Eric. You've awakened the Gazebo. It runs down the hill and eats you." At which point Eric says he's going to roll up a new character who will seek revenge for the old one, and then the rest of the players crack up and enlighten Eric on his error.

Mutant tribbles? Aren't you describing "Pac Man"?

Re: Why...

[kengr]

The Gazebo story I'm familiar with doesn't end that way. It ends with the DM gently explaining what a gazebo *is* to the players who feel suitably silly.

Interesting.

[seawasp]

The original and canonical version certainly ends with the death of Eric's character. See, for instance,

http://groups.google.com/groups?selm=S13e8.94e%40netfunny.com&output=gplain

which reproduces the original article.