Land of Eem - Session Two: Wally's Waffles & Rats (part two)

Storyline (what’s happening)

• Wally Pervvis Dump Whiffle (owner of the tavern/restaurant “Wallally, Waffles”) is in trouble. A company called Subterranean Pits and Lees LLC claims it now owns the property after taking over the nearby town of Fire Damp, and it wants to shut the tavern down.

• Wally hires the group to find his missing property deed, which he believes is hidden in the basement cellar.

• The basement is infested with giant killer rats that have tunneled out into surrounding caves.
• The party explores connected tunnels, fighting and evading threats while encountering multiple hazards:
  • Bone-filled cave areas
  • Wicked “bitey mushrooms” (fun ghoul/fungals) that can paralyze or harm by toxic bite
  • A sticky/inky web cave that traps the party with an Underlands ink-pot spider
  • A dark chasm leading to a rat boss zone with giant crystals, where a powerful rat leader appears
  • A water pool with lurking scumseers (tentacled underwater predators) that attempt to lure/capture the party

Gameplay highlights (major encounters & moments)

Mushroom cave discovery

• Players are warned not to touch the mushrooms.
• A “fake blood” bottle is thrown to test them, but a large killer rat appears—forcing the party to proceed carefully.

Repeated rat combat

• The group alternates between:
  • scouting
  • parlay/intimidation attempts
  • fights
• Goop uses a quick knife attack to kill a killer rat after other characters try social/utility approaches first.

Fungal ambush

• When a dead killer rat is thrown onto the mushroom field, the “mushrooms” react violently:
  • Eyes open
  • Mouths open
  • They attack
• The fungus is identified as small carnivorous “fungals” / “fun ghouls” with toxic/paralyzing bites.

Spider web trap + dynamite solution

• The party investigates a web cave and learns it’s a dangerous Underlands spider (ink-pot spider).
• Neville gets entangled.
• The party uses dynamite to blast mushrooms near the area, creating temporary safer movement space while trying to avoid further spider trouble.

Darkness navigation & improvised lighting

• In the chaos, characters get separated and must improvise light:
  • Two mushroom stalks rubbed together glow, acting like a candle/glowstick lamp.

Water pool encounter

• While probing the water depth using a glowing mushroom piece, a tentacled predator attacks.
• It’s identified as scumseers, paranoid cult-praying creatures that lure victims into ritual danger.
• The party chooses escape instead of a fight, retreating back through the tunnels.

Chasm traversal

• A 20-ft wide gap is crossed using a rope/vine “tightrope” system.
• They improve safety by using rope as a tie-off/assist.

Huge spider boss-style hazard + rescue

• Neville falls into the chasm and lands into a web where a large spider begins emerging/tugging.
• The party improvises a coordinated response:
  • Goop distracts the spider
  • Ludo saves Neville using the rope/vine as a swing/assist method
• Neville then kills the spider as it climbs out of the chasm/web.

Final rat boss negotiation and combat

• With King Click identified as the rat leader, the party attempts to:
  • negotiate/trick using “cheese” and deed-for-supply bait
• King Click refuses to help directly and summons/pressures killer rats, starting the fight.
• Ludo uses music-based “wrangling” style effects to distract/herd smaller rats briefly.
• Cini climbs onto King Click and attacks while Goop searches and distracts.
• Neville lands the killing blow; King Click dies.
• In/near King Click’s crown, the party finds Wally’s deed.

Key strategies / tips shown

• Test hazards from range first Throwing a bottle to provoke reactions in the mushroom field helps avoid immediately touching dangerous areas.

• Use social skills strategically—but don’t rely on them Parley/intimidation can buy advantage or distract briefly, but major threats still tend to become combat.

• Explosives to create temporary safe lanes Dynamite clears/neutralizes portions of the environment (fungals/web-adjacent zone) to enable traversal.

• Improvise utility tools Mushroom-glow “lighting” is crucial in darkness, and rope/vine planning across the chasm prevents party losses.

• Control the battlefield with positioning Ludo’s music distracts/reroutes enemy attention to protect key allies long enough to act.

• Rescue/cover with combined actions When Neville falls, the team coordinates distraction + swing rescue rather than attempting brute-force recovery.

• Track the “deed” goal even during chaos Search actions may pause during emergencies to keep combat manageable, but the deed is confirmed once King Click is defeated.

Gamers / sources featured (mentioned at the end of the video/session)

• Rico (credited/mentioned during the “welcome” moment)
• Oliver (credited/mentioned for the raid)
• Hosted under Land of Eim, published by Exalted Funeral (roleplaying game source/company)