Almost Bedtime Theater

Sprinkles is Missing! Review, Actual Play (Ep 20)

• Dan, Rachael & Finn • Season 2 • Episode 20

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A transcript of this episode is available via the episode page on Buzzsprout.

In this episode, we review and play the RPG Sprinkles is Missing!

  • 05:19– Actual play

Sprinkles is Missing! was created by M. Allen Hall.  You can purchase the game at the sites below and a variety of other online shops. You can find the creator on Instagram and Threads as @m_allen_hall.

How to reach us:

Other TTRPG content referenced in this episode include:

  • Stories RPG - a family-friendly RPG actual play podcast


Our intro and outro theme music are by McRoMusic, who can be found on Patreon at patreon.com/mcromusic.

How to reach us:

Rachael:

Hi, I'm Rachael.

Finn:

I'm Finn.

Dan:

And I'm Dan, Rachael's dad.

Rachael:

And this is Almost Bedtime Theater, a podcast about playing roleplaying games with kids. In this episode, we are reviewing and playing Sprinkles is Missing!, an RPG about students of a magical elementary school venturing into a forbidding enchanted forest in search of their beloved school mascot, Sprinkles, the unicorn.

Dan:

Before we get to the review, though, I want to let you know about another family friendly podcast you might enjoy. Stories RPG isn't just a great all ages role playing game for telling all kinds of stories together. It's also an actual play podcast using that game. They've got episodes with superheroes and goblins and sci fi students, as well as some excellent episodes with advice about writing stories and interviews with the creators of other RPGs. You can find them on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and StoriesRPG.com. And now for the review!

Finn:

Sprinkles is Missing! was created by M. Allen Hall and comes as a 72 page book. If you prefer short, easy to run games, don't let the length of the book deter you. Most of those pages are scenes that you only need to read if you end up playing them in the game. The tone is fun and conversational, and it's written for both new and experienced gamers so that it's easy to understand.

Rachael:

In addition to the rules, you'll need some six sided dice, ideally four per player, copies of the character sheet, a way to take notes, and someone to run the game. Each player is a student of Arbor Haven Magical Elementary School. They start out with a name, a magic spell based on their favorite class at school, and an item, like a jump rope or a sack of marbles. And that's all you need to get going.

Finn:

The core game mechanic is to roll two to four six sided dice and add the two highest results. If that total is eight or higher, you succeed. If it's less than eight, you fail. But you have several options that allow you to re-roll, like asking for help or using an item. Just how many dice you get to roll depends on how challenging the obstacle is, or if you are using a spell, how good you are at casting that spell. If you succeed at casting a spell, you get better at it, so that's cool.

Dan:

Sprinkles is Missing is available digitally for$10 at Itch.io or through DriveThruRPG. Printed copies are$25, and those can be found at MAllenHall.com, Indie Press Revolution, and a variety of other shops online. We'll include some links in our show notes if you'd like to check it out. So, let's talk a bit about what we thought about the game. On a scale of simple, moderate, or complex, I'd say that this is a simple game to run. For my part, I spent less than 30 minutes reading the book and getting things ready. Thanks to all the scenes that were included, it's possible to run this game with very little prep. A lot of that is because the scenes are presented so nicely. Each one is a single page that provides a bit of description that you can read to the players when they're deciding what scene to pick, a paragraph you can read to set the scene when they arrive, a handful of useful details, what counts as completing the scene, and a suggested reward for getting through it. How would you, how would you rate playing the game?

Finn:

I would say playing it was pretty simple, because there was no complex spell mechanic or anything like that. You can just roll to cast it whenever you'd like.

Rachael:

I think it's pretty simple because you don't need a lot, and you don't have to be like super experienced role players to enjoy the game.

Dan:

Excellent.

Rachael:

What do you like about the game?

Finn:

I like how creative all the different spells are and how there's different ones for like your favorite subject in school. Like there's the math spells and the art spells. I think it's pretty interesting.

Dan:

I'll add that it's very easy to just pick up and play. We played it with Rachael's grandmother who basically did not have experience playing role playing games. It worked out great, so it's something that's very available to people at all levels of experience. I like that game emphasizes giving players hints about what lies down each path of the forest, so that they have something to base their decision on when they're trying to pick which scene to go for. I also enjoyed that some of the scenes have these little connections with each other that are fun to discover. So, like, you found the bone and then later on you found its owner.

Finn:

Mhm.

Dan:

That kind of thing occurs a few times in those scenes. When it comes to playing the game, I mean, we've already said you don't need a lot of experience, you don't need any experience in order to enjoy playing it, but do you have any suggestions for someone who's about to play it for the first time?

Rachael:

I would say, don't forget to take advantage of your items, they're definitely sure to be useful, and I know I've definitely forgotten that I've had them a couple of times. What suggestions do you have for someone who is going to run this game for the first time?

Dan:

I would say read through the first part of the book, familiarize yourself with how the scenes are presented but don't worry about reading them all because they are, they are really presented well to be something that you can, you can read on the fly if you want and, and take it from there. Anybody have anything else they'd like to add?

Finn:

I don't think so.

Dan:

If you'd like to get in touch with us with a question, comment, or suggestion, you can email us at almostbedtimetheater@gmail. com or find our current social media links at bio.link/almostbedtimetheater. Okay. Let's start by having you introduce your elementary student characters that you're going to be playing today. Who would like to go first?

Rachael:

Okay, so my name is Shenanigans, I'm an art mage, my spell is frame the shot, and my item is a pogo stick. It's a registered lethal weapon in 37 countries.

Dan:

The pogo stick?!

Rachael:

Yes! It was my fault, every single one. I

Finn:

You've done a lot of traveling, huh?

Dan:

What? No, I don't need to know. It's better I don't know.

Finn:

I don't

Rachael:

Once you've reached the third grade of school, you know, you've done a lot of things. You've earned a lot of, um, experience points...

Finn:

Mm hmm.

Rachael:

And you've got a lot of, um, learning still to do. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Dan:

What does frame the shot do?

Rachael:

Um, it... I can hold my hands up in like a camera, you know, with your, the right angles know, like that. And everything in the frame cannot move out of the frame.

Dan:

All right. Finn, who will you be playing today?

Finn:

I will be playing Jupiter, the music sorcerer, and so the spell that I have is called Airhorn, which makes an airhorn.

Dan:

Beautiful. Uh, and what item, hopefully less lethal, are you carrying today?

Finn:

Twenty five foot hose.

Dan:

Nice.

Rachael:

I don't want to know what you could do with that.

Dan:

I'm sure it will be very helpful somewhere along the line. Okay. You are students at Arbor Haven Magical Elementary School, which sits at the edge of the Enchanted Forest. Aside from learning magic, you also get to learn all the normal school things that children learn, that they also then, promptly forget, during summer vacation. Except for the magic. Everybody remembers their magic lessons. And like most schools, uh, yours has a mascot, but this mascot is not somebody in a silly costume. This mascot is a unicorn. Sprinkles the unicorn. And everybody loves Sprinkles and he loves everybody there. He, um, is always showing up for birthday parties and going to the track meets and just being everywhere and helpful. And it's awesome and wondrous and there's sparkles and everything. But last weekend, he did not show up to any birthday parties. And on Monday,

Finn:

He didn't... He didn't go to my clarinet concert.

Dan:

On Monday, he didn't show up for your clarinet concert. Uh, on Tuesday what did he not show up for, Rachael?

Rachael:

A big prank on Principal Tootietr uck.

Dan:

Principal Elwood.

Rachael:

Yeah, that guy, sure.

Dan:

So, he

Rachael:

Oh wait, teacher?

Dan:

Yes?

Rachael:

I think you mean prin I think you I think you mean

Dan:

Do you perhaps have a humorous term for Principal Elwood that you would like to share with the

Rachael:

Who is Principal Elwood? It's Principal It's

Dan:

I think you do! I think you're laughing so hard you can't get it out!

Rachael:

It's Principal Elkfood. Excuse you.

Finn:

I don't even think that's funny.

Rachael:

I need to write down some good, like, names. Hold on.

Dan:

For the principal?

Rachael:

Yes! Who else?

Dan:

So, yes, apparently Sprinkles did not even show up for the big prank on Principal Elwood.

Rachael:

How offensive.

Dan:

And then on Thursday, the student council brought their concerns up to Principal Elwood, who said that he could not help. And now it's Friday. School is out for the weekend, and no one has seen Sprinkles for a week.

Finn:

That's suspicious. What's up with the principal, man?

Rachael:

I think he's our main suspect.

Finn:

Yeah, write that down, write that down.

Rachael:

I I am, I am, I am, I am. Yep, yep, yep. Got it. Feeling very official for a third grader right now.

Dan:

So you have made a decision. If Sprinkles isn't around, there's only one place he could be. You gather your supplies, your 25 feet of hose, and you head for where the school playground meets the forest. Sprinkles is missing, and if Principal Elwood won't help, you'll have to do it on your own.

Finn:

I think I've got my hair in some, like, braided pigtails. I'm down to business.

Dan:

Ha ha ha ha ha!

Rachael:

Yeah, I, I decided to like shave half my hair bald the last summer and the other half is like unbrushed. Who needs to brush their hair? I'm perfect as always, ready for business.

Dan:

That's got shenanigans written all over it!

Rachael:

I'm bringing my pogo stick.

Finn:

Oh Boing? You traveling on the pogo stick?

Rachael:

Yeah, totally.

Finn:

Yeah.

Rachael:

But it's mostly for like whacking and poking reasons. Yeah.

Dan:

Alright, as you step between the first trees of the forest, without a warning, a voice speaks behind you. It's a familiar adult voice. The principal's voice.

Finn:

Run.

Dan:

You spin and see him standing at the edge of the playground with his arms crossed. He says,"What, uh, do you think you're doing?"

Rachael:

So, yeah, I'm just gonna be like,"NOTHING!" and waltz into the trees.

Finn:

This is how we always walk home. From school, we walk home through the woods. To my house. We're gonna go hang out, have some, have some snacks. I've got a tree house. You could be invited if you really wanted to be, but it's kind of like

Rachael:

Wait, we're inviting Principal Sparkletoot?

Dan:

Did you say Sparkletoot? The little thumbs up as she falls off the chair.

Finn:

You're right, he can't come because it's like, it's kind of like a third graders only kind of event, so You little invite the.

Rachael:

It's one of those non-spoken rules: you don't invite the principal.

Finn:

Yeah.

Dan:

Well, fun fact, if you're going to try to lie to the principal, you get to roll dice. Let's see how this goes down.

Rachael:

I am so great at lying. Like I should have a spell for like, instinct convincing.

Dan:

I believe there is one, but you didn't take it. You get to roll two dice. This is a challenging thing.

Rachael:

It is so not challenging.

Dan:

It's the principal of an elementary school. I suspect they have a clue.

Rachael:

I got a six and a three.

Dan:

Okay. So the way-

Rachael:

Is he falling over screaming? Is he running back to the school?

Finn:

He's probably sad because he's not invited to our treehouse where we're gonna hang out and play games and eat

Rachael:

That's a good point.

Dan:

Yeah Yeah, yeah, Um, so the way the game works is, uh, you roll the number of dice, the number of six sided dice. You add the two highest values. So if you end up rolling four dice, you pick out the two highest. If you're only rolling two dice, obviously you're just picking the two you've got. If that number is 8 or higher, then you succeed. If it's less than 8, not so much. So, you rolled a 9 there, Rachael. Uh, that is a success. Inexplicably, Principal Elwood believes you.

Rachael:

I did that well.

Dan:

I think he might be more willing to believe that you two are going to go hang out at the tree house. Jupiter's got a tree house. Okay. Maybe that's not entirely outside of the, uh, the realm of possibility. So he says,"Oh, that sounds like a grand time, grand time. Do watch your step in the forest, then. It can be dangerous. Toodles!

Finn:

I want to honk my air horn, but I don't want to jeopardize our passage here, so I'm refraining.

Dan:

You have successfully, managed to-

Rachael:

Avoided Principal Wrinkleturtle?

Dan:

Yes, let's go with that. You are in the forest. Now, the way this will work is, um, in order to reach Sprinkles, you need to successfully complete six scenes in the forest. Each time you, you move past one, you have two paths in the forest that you can take. You have completed your interaction with the principal, and you have moved into the forest. Now you can hear off in one direction, there is a rustle of activity, uh, an old woman's voice and the clucking of chickens. Off the other direction, you can see that the trees thin out a bit, and the sunlight shines on the floor of the forest ahead. Which direction would you like to go?

Rachael:

Old woman, I want to steal a chicken.

Finn:

I'm down for chickens.

Dan:

Alright, chicken theft!

Rachael:

Totally not for nefarious purposes.

Dan:

Says the person whose pogo stick is illegal in 37 countries.

Finn:

Does that include this country?

Rachael:

No, I think I'd rather not be hunted down by the authorities. Uh, for owning a pogo stick.

Finn:

Sounds good.

Dan:

You enter a clearing. A hut with a thatched roof stands between two tall dead trees. An old woman is chasing a few chickens around the clearing. They appear to have escaped from the chicken coop next to the hut.

Rachael:

Can I steal one?

Dan:

And just so you're aware, the goal of this scene is to get all of the chickens back in the chicken coop.

Rachael:

For how long.

Dan:

Uh, just once, I guess.

Rachael:

Hehehehe.

Dan:

So old woman is there and she's like,"Hey, come back here, you chickens. What are you, chicken?"

Rachael:

Can I use my frame the shot, and like

Finn:

Oh, and then I could, like, herd them up.

Dan:

That sounds like a perfect use of your spell to make all the chickens stop so that that way someone could go pick them up and go stick them in the coop.

Rachael:

And then steal them. I honestly don't need a chicken, but I want one.

Dan:

Well, there are, there are two chickens running around that need to be dealt with.

Rachael:

So she'd probably notice if one went missing.

Finn:

We could ask for a chicken.

Rachael:

But where's the fun in truthfulness and honesty?

Finn:

Fair. Good point.

Rachael:

Thank you.

Dan:

Would you, uh, like to use your spell, Shenanigans?

Rachael:

Yes.

Dan:

So the thing with spells, they always start out where you roll 2 dice. But if you succeed, you get to start adding dice for future attempts. So the more you succeed with your spell, the better you are at it. We're starting then with just 2 dice for shenanigans. You need to roll that 8 or higher on your spell. What you got?

Rachael:

A four and a five?

Dan:

Would you like to add those together for the younger members of our listening audience?

Rachael:

A nine. I got a nine in total. Do you want me to say that with more enthusiasm?

Finn:

Yippee!

Dan:

As enthusiastic as you want.

Rachael:

Yay!

Dan:

All right. A nine is a success. So you have successfully frozen the chickens in place What is Jupiter doing then? The chickens are frozen. Honestly, uh, the old woman is probably frozen in place too, because she was chasing the chickens.

Finn:

Am I so what am I doing? Am I taking a chicken and running or what am I doing?

Rachael:

It's my chicken now! Ha! Ha!

Dan:

In theory you were putting the chickens in the chicken coop, but who am I to say?

Finn:

So I'm, I'm running in there, grabbing a big handful of chicken, taking them to the coop.

Dan:

The old woman says,"Oh, thank you very much for catching my chickens." That's a totally different accent. I, I don't, I don't-

Rachael:

I don't know what you are doing.

Dan:

I don't either, but, but you're doing the right thing, because she's like,"Thank you, thank you."

Finn:

Maybe she would give us an egg, like a chicken egg,

Rachael:

Egg! We could toss it! We could toss it at Principal Snort Ox's window!

Finn:

I was thinking it was going to hatch, but I guess, two options.

Rachael:

Well, I mean, if you want to take care of a baby chicken, then you do that,

Finn:

you you wanted to take care of an adult chicken.

Dan:

Ha ha, shifty eyes.

Rachael:

No, I didn't. I just wanted a chicken, I wasn't planning ahead, okay?

Dan:

So the chickens then, very easy to catch, maneuver into the coop at this point, um, the old woman says, uh, my, my name is Beulah I am the witch of this part of the woods. And as a thank you, uh, you know, I was thinking maybe I could teach you a new spell if you want. Uh, or-

Finn:

I wanted a chicken.

Dan:

Oh, you want a chicken?

Rachael:

No, we don't want a chicken.

Finn:

No, we want, oh wait, a spell-

Dan:

No, it's fine, I can-

Finn:

A spell, a spell, a spell.

Rachael:

A spell, a spell, a

Dan:

you sure?

Rachael:

Yes.

Dan:

Oh, okay, well, what spells would you like to know? That wasn't her.

Finn:

I was to going to say.

Dan:

That accent slipped hard.

Rachael:

It's like, she's smiling one minute, and then the next she's like, what spells do you want?

Dan:

Beulah is multifaceted and could absolutely teach you all kinds of things.

Finn:

She also has chickens.

Rachael:

Yeah, I think I actually want to go with, um, Compelling Jig. You dance a little jig, the person or creature targeted by the spell must dance with you. They can do nothing else as long as you are dancing.

Dan:

That sounds very shenanigannery

Finn:

I want bar models, where you summon a bar model from the ground which can be up to ten feet tall.

Rachael:

We're becoming kinda frightening third graders.

Finn:

Mm hmm.

Dan:

This means you have successfully completed your first scene, and you get to move further into the forest. For your next scene selection, off in one direction, you hear the sound of running water. On the other direction, you see a large hole in the ground ahead.

Rachael:

You think unicorns jump down holes? Well I do, so you know, I think we should go ahead

Finn:

Maybe there's bugs in it.

Dan:

There could be bugs in it.

Finn:

I like bugs.

Dan:

You reach the hole. The hole is about 10 feet across. When you get close, a monstrous snake emerges. It sees your group and quickly weaves between the trees in a circle, trapping you.

Finn:

Are there bugs in there?

Dan:

Uh, no bugs that you notice just yet.

Finn:

I want the podcast listeners to know that I was very sad when there were no bugs in the hole.

Rachael:

Ha!

Dan:

The snake looks down at you and says,"Hello."

Finn:

Airhorn!

Dan:

"You can move out of this part of the forest as soon as you solve my riddle, or better yet, pose an interesting riddle for me."

Rachael:

Can I make the snake dance?

Dan:

Yes, Shenanigans, you could totally attempt to jig the snake.

Finn:

Well okay, I want to hear the riddle first. I want to hear the riddle first. And then we can have a dance party.

Dan:

"Oh, you want the riddle, or do you want to give the riddle? Pspspspspspsps"

Rachael:

I want to the riddle.

Dan:

"I belong to you and though others use me every day. You rarely do. What am I?"

Rachael:

A name.

Dan:

"Ah, man."

Finn:

Can we still make him dance? I think he would enjoy a little bit of a jig.

Rachael:

Would you like some dancing?

Dan:

"Yes?"

Rachael:

or, or would you like to give me a, would you like me to give you a riddle?

Dan:

"Oh, yes. I, I like all the riddles."

Rachael:

All right, you can use this on the next person that comes here. I speak without a mouth and hear without ears. I have no body, but I come alive with wind. What am I?"

Dan:

"I don't know.

Rachael:

Do you give up?

Dan:

"Yes.

Rachael:

An echo. I'm not sure how great that one actually was, but yeah.

Dan:

The snake's pleased, you know.

Finn:

Can we still do a dance?

Dan:

Totally can do a dance.

Finn:

I'm gonna do a dance.

Dan:

Do a little dance. What kinda dance does Jupiter do?

Finn:

Maybe a little bit of disco.

Dan:

Stayin alive, stayin alive.

Finn:

Yeah, running man.

Rachael:

Hold on, hold on, I'll do a, I'll do a, I can do some like, uh, opera singing with my beautiful voice.

Dan:

Is that the trigger for your dance spell? Don't think opera is known for dancing. Think you have a monkey stuck in your throat."

Finn:

That made me want to dance.

Dan:

"I sometimes get monkeys stuck in my throat."

Finn:

Can we go, like, we solved the riddle, so we, we-

Rachael:

That's true, can we go?

Dan:

Oh, yes. Yes.

Finn:

Oh, can I ask the snake, can I ask the snake if there are any bugs that would like to be my friend?

Dan:

Oh, there's, there's tons of bugs in the hole, deeper in the hole. Yes.

Finn:

Do you want to go deeper in the hole? I want to go deeper in the hole.

Rachael:

Okay, okay, okay, okay, okay.

Finn:

The hole is basically... it looks like a big snake tunnel,

Rachael:

And we're going in?

Dan:

As you make your way in, it gets darker and darker and there are bugs. What kind of bug would you like to find?

Finn:

I want a little green beetle.

Dan:

You do your best to find a green beetle in the dark. You've definitely got a beetle.

Finn:

Maybe there's glowing bugs!

Dan:

You want a glowing bug? Because then you could see where you were going. You find, yes, green glowing beetles, and then you continue on through the tunnel and you come out further in the forest. Off to one side, you hear a distant popping sound and then all is quiet. To the other side, you catch a glimpse of an animal with yellow fur dodging between the trees.

Rachael:

That's a unicorn, right? Yellow fur. Unicorns. Always happens. Yep. To the yellow fur! Yay!

Finn:

Let's go!

Rachael:

No objections were made. So, you know.

Dan:

All right, let me find that scene. You head into the forest, uh, and following the, the flashes of yellow fur. And as you get closer, you realize it's a golden retriever. A couple of you, which is to say, you, realize that the dog is one that belongs to a neighbor and you know the dog's name is Charlie. Charlie is carrying a rather large bone in his mouth. It's, it's like a bone over a foot long. That's what Charlie's got. And Charlie is dodging around in the forest.

Rachael:

What did he...? What, what sort of dark arts is he getting into these days?

Finn:

Necromancy?

Dan:

The goal of this scene is to get Charlie to trust you enough that he stays with you. He's apparently a little lost in the forest.

Finn:

Hmm.

Rachael:

Can I play Tug of War with him with my pogo stick?

Dan:

I'm thinking Charlie's fairly playful. That sounds like a pretty easy thing to do. So you'll be rolling four dice, taking the two highest to see if you can break an eight, to see if you can convince Charlie to play with your pogo stick.

Rachael:

I got 4 and 4, so that's an 8.

Dan:

So you kind of lure Charlie in, uh, playing around with the pogo stick. He comes in, he's yapping happily. He drops the bone and he starts like tugging at the end of the pogo stick and yanking around. And he's very happy.

Finn:

Can I, can I grab the bone? I want to see what's going on with the bone.

Dan:

Absolutely. It looks like it's a bone from a human. If something had a slight magical tinge to it, how, how would Jupiter notice?

Finn:

I think when I touched it, it would like tingle my fingertips a little bit.

Dan:

There you go then, yes, the bone makes your fingertips tingle.

Finn:

Hmm.

Dan:

What would you like to do with the bone?

Finn:

I'm going to put it in there with my, with my 25 feet of hose. I'm going to keep it for later.

Dan:

Excellent. Go ahead and mark that down in your inventory. All right, so you've got Charlie hanging out with you now. He's happy to, to run along with you as you go deeper into the forest. Your next decision you've got, uh, one direction, the forest looks darker than you've seen elsewhere. The other direction you notice someone crouching behind a fallen tree. What would you like to investigate?

Rachael:

I bet it's the principal. Can we, like, surprise him with Airhorn?

Dan:

So you'd like to sneak up and air horn whoever's behind this tree?

Rachael:

I don't care if it's the principal. I don't know why we don't like the principal so much, but maybe he's just assigned us a bunch of detentions.

Dan:

I wonder why.

Finn:

Shenanigans, is a bad influence on me, I'll just say that.

Dan:

Shenanigans is a terrible influence!

Rachael:

I mean, totally, like, the entire goal. Isn't that why we're playing this game?

Finn:

But he didn't, he didn't want to investigate for Sprinkles.

Rachael:

Yeah. He's so sus!

Dan:

So question: are you going to make your way up and figure out who's behind the tree? Or are you just going to jump out in an air horn first?

Rachael:

Gonna air horn. Air horn.

Dan:

Yep. Okay.

Finn:

Airhorn first, questions later!

Rachael:

That's how you win somebody's trust, quick.

Finn:

Yeah.

Dan:

It is. It is. You know what? I'm just going to let this happen. Okay Jupiter. Can you please describe for us what it is you do?

Finn:

So I come leaping over the log, land, arm up, finger in the air, very important, hand on the hip, and just, Airhorn.

Dan:

And the, uh, the person behind the log who is not in fact Principal Elwood flies into the air, all arms and legs going every direction. And you recognize them as Jules. She is, uh, one of the high school students.

Finn:

Have they lost any bones recently? Because I've got one.

Dan:

She is still trying to catch her breath enough to reply, but she seems to have all her limbs.

Finn:

Obvious limbs.

Dan:

Obvious limbs. Uh, eventually she is able to talk and she says,"I got scared by a bear and ran away, but forgot my backpack, and when I came back to look for it, it was gone. I think the bear took it because it was full of snacks."

Rachael:

Ooh, I like snacks.

Finn:

Why are you here?

Dan:

Oh, I was practicing magic.

Rachael:

I thought it was a forbidden forest.

Dan:

Uh, less forbidden and more foreboding, I guess.

Rachael:

Like, I'm just gonna stage whisper, they're sus.

Dan:

And she says,"I don't suppose you'd be willing to get my backpack from the bear's cave?"

Finn:

What do we get in return, though?

Rachael:

Yeah, are we getting paid for this?

Finn:

Snacks? Do we get, do we get some snacks?

Dan:

I, I suppose I could give you a snack.

Rachael:

Do you have nachos?

Dan:

Oh, yeah. There's like a whole can of nachos in there.

Finn:

Hmm.

Rachael:

Hey, Let's go find this bear before they eat my nachos.

Finn:

Yeah, let's go.

Dan:

Jules points the way to the bear cave and you make your way there. You hear some deep gravelly snores coming from within. What's your plan?

Finn:

Pogo stick?

Rachael:

And poke the bear?

Finn:

Yeah. It doesn't seem great, does it?

Rachael:

Let's just go in without a plan and see what happens.

Dan:

Okay, no plan it is. Uh, you enter the cave. It's dark and humid and the air smells of popcorn breath. And there at the back of the cave is a great big bear. It's a sleep. It has one paw curled around what appears to be a slightly mauled backpack.

Rachael:

Can I do a Compelling Jig and make them dance while we steal the backpack?

Finn:

You, okay, yeah, yeah, yeah, you dance, I go running in there, grab the backpack and take off. Then you can, uh, deal with, uh.

Rachael:

What kind of bear is this and could we climb a tree to escape it? Because I'm fairly certain there's a type of bear that doesn't climb trees. I don't remember what kind it was.

Finn:

Red next to black, you're in danger, Jack. What? I don't know, that's snakes.

Rachael:

There's a rhyme.

Finn:

Red sky in morning, sailors take warning.

Dan:

Because there's a bear on your ship?!

Rachael:

If it's brown, lay down. If it's black, fight back. Oh gosh, if it's white, goodnight.

Finn:

Good night!

Rachael:

Yeah.

Dan:

I am so glad that we get to have a science question to answer every time we play. Um, from what I'm seeing black, brown, and grizzly bears are good climbers.

Finn:

But maybe this one isn't. Maybe this one has a bit of a skill issue.

Rachael:

Is it a polar bear because they don't climb trees?

Finn:

Polar bear. Polar bear. Cannot climb trees.

Dan:

That's that's a solid point. Uh, but I'm thinking it's unlikely a polar bear is what's living in the depths of the forest.

Finn:

That's fair. If I was a bear, what would I do, hypothetically, when confronted with bar models?

Dan:

That sounds like a, uh, a scientifically testable hypothesis to me.

Finn:

And If that and if that doesn't work, we're close enough to the entrance to tell if it's brown or black, and then we can either lay down or fight back.

Dan:

All right. So what kind of jig is Shenanigans going to make the bear do?

Rachael:

I'm gonna do the tango, I think.

Finn:

We're going to have a boogie.

Rachael:

That's a partner dance, right?

Dan:

It's uh, it's rather famously a dance that takes two, yes. Which means you and the bear...

Rachael:

No, I think, you know, okay,

Dan:

Is there a dance that you'd like to use that doesn't require holding hands with a bear?

Rachael:

Sure, I'll do the Macarena.

Finn:

Hey, Macarena!

Dan:

Since this is the first time that you have used Compelling Jig, you're going to be rolling just two dice.

Finn:

Uh oh.

Rachael:

Okay, I got a 5 and a 1...

Dan:

A six. Well, the good news is that this game offers some options if you don't succeed.

Rachael:

A, getting eaten by a bear. D, wait, B, uh, getting eaten by a bear. C, getting eaten by a bear.

Finn:

We only get eaten if it's white.

Rachael:

Oh, right. Is it brown, or, what, what kind of bear is this?

Dan:

This is a healthy-looking brown bear.

Rachael:

Alright, we gotta play dead.

Finn:

Go ahead. Wait, is it awake? Did your spell wake it up? Your spell

Rachael:

Is it awake?

Finn:

I don't know if it is awake.

Dan:

It's not fully awake, but it's definitely starting to wake up. That said, if you decide to retry this and, and this time use an item or get help from a friend, you can roll again.

Rachael:

Sure, I'll do a pogo stick and dancing.

Finn:

Do you want me to start beatboxing?

Rachael:

Beatboxing, yes.

Dan:

Like. Cats in boots and cats and boots and cats.

Rachael:

No, it's bears and cats and bears and cats and bears Totally elevated it. I got a five and a six!

Finn:

I'm picturing the pogo stick like a cane, and you're like,

Rachael:

I mean I was kind of thinking I was bouncing up and down with the beat, while doing the Macarena. Note my skills.

Dan:

So you start bouncing and dancing and beatboxing and you see the bear's shoulders start to go up and down with the beat, and then its hips start bouncing with the beat, and it wakes all the way up and stands up on its back legs and starts doing the Macarena!

Finn:

Mar mar carina.

Rachael:

That's really cute. Steal the backpack.

Finn:

Okay, I'm grabbing the bag.

Rachael:

Still beatboxing the whole time?

Finn:

Well, yeah. Ha ha.

Rachael:

Bears and cats

Finn:

Ha

Rachael:

Everyone who is a great beatboxer listening going like,"Oh my goodness."

Dan:

Okay. You have the bag of snacks and a dancing bear. What's the plan?

Finn:

Shall I throw up my, um, my bar models?

Rachael:

Yeah, do the bar model.

Finn:

This is my first roll. Oh, that one's on the floor. Got a six and a one. By the way, by the way, this makes seven.

Rachael:

Can you incorporate the bone into, Incorporate the bone into it?

Finn:

Would a bear chew on a bone?

Dan:

I'm going to say yes, the bear would be interested in the bone. Do you want to roll to distract it that way instead of using the, the bar models?

Finn:

Yeah.

Dan:

Let's call that a standard difficulty. So you get three dice plus one more for using the bone.

Finn:

Ooh, four and four, that's eight.

Dan:

The bear's eyes lock on the bone as it sails past. Shenanigans lets the dancing spell drop, the bear heads right over to check out its new snack, and you book it out of the cave where you find Jules nervously waiting for you.

Rachael:

I've already taken the nachos out and I'm eating them.

Dan:

Jules is very happy to get what remains of her backpack. And she's like,"So, what are you two doing all the way out here in, you know, the forest?"

Rachael:

That's not for you to know

Finn:

yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I think it's funny that this high schooler just had two third graders, like, save her stuff.

Dan:

Is there anything else that you'd like to do before you continue on your way?

Finn:

Yeah. I wanna do a creepy little laugh and then walk away backwards, like, staring at her. Can we do that?

Dan:

Sure you can do that.

Finn:

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

Dan:

And so it is you leave behind a slightly disturbed Jules. And with Charlie in tow, head deeper into the forest. One, uh, option you have is that you can head toward a clearing where there appears to be something low and wide filling the center of the clearing. In the other direction, you can see a man in the distance pulling on what looks like a very large rock.

Rachael:

It's a unicorn.

Dan:

It's a unicorn, which one?

Rachael:

The low and wide thing.

Dan:

And you want to investigate this low, wide unicorn.

Finn:

That's, that's, that's okay with me. I think, um, Jupiter will listen to what you say and just be like, okay. That makes sense to me. Unicorn. All right.

Dan:

What you find when you reach the edge of the clearing is a ring of oversized white mushrooms. Each mushroom is about knee-high and there are 16 of them making up this ring that's like 20 feet in diameter. In the center of the ring is a wooden box that's a big enough that one of you could stand on it. And just so you know, the goal of this scene is to get what's in that box.

Rachael:

So is it like...

Finn:

This seems deceptive.

Rachael:

um,

Finn:

I'm thinking like a fairy circle.

Rachael:

Could we like take a stick and toss it in there?

Dan:

Certainly.

Rachael:

All right, I wanna do that.

Dan:

You find a nice stick and you toss it in. It lies there.

Finn:

Like, what is the thing about fairy circles where they like, they make you dance or something, like you can't stop dancing?

Dan:

Tell you what, if you would like to try and recall that lesson from your Forest Safety class, that will be a role with three dice.

Finn:

Oh, I got a five and a five.

Dan:

Great. Uh, you remember that stepping on the ground inside of fairy circle will make you fall asleep.

Rachael:

What if, what if you run inside the fairy circle? Instead of just stepping inside it?

Dan:

Then you get to fall asleep at speed. Uh, probably face first.

Finn:

Do you think I could lasso, the box with my 25 foot hose?

Dan:

I think you could do that.

Finn:

Okay.

Dan:

I'm going to say that, uh, that you get two dice for this, but because you're using your item, that's an extra die.

Finn:

Ooh, six and a five. Eleven. Yee haw!

Dan:

And with a big yank, you drag the box all the way to the edge of the ring.

Finn:

Do I Get to keep my hose? I get to have my hose back, right?

Dan:

Yep. And inside the box are two more items, so go ahead and roll on the items table to see what you found.

Rachael:

6 5

Finn:

I got a kite. 6 5, first aid kit. Do you want a kite? We can trade.

Rachael:

What was a 5 6?

Finn:

Mm, a bar of soap. You're not big on bath time?

Rachael:

I'll take a bar of soap. Could make somebody trip on that.

Dan:

Now you only need to get through one more scene, to complete one more scene to reach Sprinkles. Do you want to head for the sound of someone crying loudly, or towards the distant howl of a wolf?

Rachael:

Let's go make the person having a bad day have a better day.

Dan:

You got it. Uh, you follow the sound and what you discover is a skeleton sitting on a log and crying.

Rachael:

Have they lost a bone?

Dan:

They have indeed. You can clearly see that it is missing its left femur. That's its, its thigh bone.

Finn:

Here's the issue. So, so, there was a bear, and, and, the bone,

Rachael:

The bone!

Finn:

The bear, the bear,

Rachael:

The bear.

Finn:

I'm sure you could go get it.

Rachael:

Don't we have the bone? I thought you had the bone.

Finn:

I threw it at the bear.

Rachael:

Oh, and we need to get the bone to pass this?

Dan:

Technically, you just need to help the skeleton be able to walk again. Uh, if you had the bone, it would be easy peasy since you don't, you're gonna need to get innovative.

Rachael:

Don't tell me he wants my pogo stick.

Finn:

Would he like, would he like 25 feet of hose?

Rachael:

Can we scour the area for a really big sticks?

Dan:

Absolutely. That sounds like an easy thing to do out here with all these trees, so go ahead and roll four dice for me.

Rachael:

Okay, cool. I got 4 and 4 so that is an 8

Dan:

Oh, you find out very nice stick that's the perfect size and looks quite, uh, aesthetically pleasing as a thighbone. And you get the skeleton all set up with it, and he's like,"Yarrr, that be a most excellent leg. Now, where might I be finding that bear you mentioned?"

Rachael:

I don't want him to hurt the bear! What are you gonna do to the bear?

Dan:

Oh, I'll just be going to, you, you know, hug it out with, with the bear. Very friendly, like, as you do."

Rachael:

Alright, I'll I'll point it in the direction of the bear.

Dan:

"Now, I suppose I be owing you, uh, a token of, thanks for this fine new leg here. Uh, what would you say to each of you learning a new spell?"

Finn:

I want forgery. ha

Rachael:

Oh gosh, I don't know. I probably would have gone with forgery as well. Wireless speaker, that's what I want.

Dan:

Very good. So armed with the new superpowers of forgery and wireless speakers, you March off, once more into the forest. And this time you come to a clearing, at the center of which is a tall gray stone tower with this walled off garden off to one side and coming out of the front door of the tower is a, is a middle-aged man in a dark gray robe with a, a matching pointy hat, and right behind him is Sprinkles.

Finn:

So, what's up with this guy? Did he steal he steal our unicorn?

Dan:

Whoever he is, he seems to be on good terms with Sprinkles. He says some parting words to the unicorn who prances over to you and is ever so happy to see you.

Rachael:

Um, I think we just need to like tell Sprinkles, like, do you realize you've been gone for like a week and everybody's freaking out and Principal Food Truck did nothing?

Finn:

He missed my clarinet concert.

Rachael:

You missed the clarinet concert. How could you? And you missed the huge prank on Principal What's His Name!

Dan:

Sprinkles is so very sorry that he missed the concert and the prank, but he's been here visiting his friend Graham, who has been helping him dye his amazing mane rainbow colors. It is such a big project. It takes like a whole week to get it done.

Rachael:

You're telling me I've been lied to my whole life and it hasn't always been a rainbow?!

Dan:

Oh, heavens no, unicorn manes are white.

Rachael:

I will never trust anyone again, Sprinkles. Especially not you. This is a lie, I will trust you again next week, but, yeah, give me time, I'm processing some emotions right here.

Finn:

Sprinkles, would you like a clarinet solo?

Dan:

Sprinkles would love a clarinet solo.

Finn:

As soon as I get my clarinet, it's in the band room right now, so we have to go back to the school, but, then I can play my clarinet.

Dan:

And it's at this point that Graham cheerfully waves his hand and POOF you are all magically teleported back to the school playground where Principal Elwood is waiting. He greets Sprinkles knowingly and says,"Welcome back, welcome back and congratulations on a most impressive, if risky journey through the forest."

Rachael:

So, Principal Bald Whisker knew about this the whole time, and didn't say anything to the student council? I will raise this with the authorities. I am angry. He doesn't get any of my nachos. No.

Finn:

We got lost on the way to my treehouse.

Dan:

And a wonderful, wonderful tree house it is, I am certain" And then with a little smile, he wishes you a nice weekend and vanishes into thin air."Toodles!" And that's where we're going to call it. Congratulations on making it through Sprinkles is Missing! And that's our show on Sprinkles is Missing! If it sounded like fun, you can find it at Itch.io, DriveThruRPG, MAllenHall.com, and multiple other online shops. You can also find M. Allan Hall on Instagram and Threads as M_Allan_Hall. Our intro and outro themes were created by McRoMusic. Links to their work are available in our show notes. Thanks again for listening and have a good night. Okay, so you are students at Arbor Haven Magical Elementary School, which is the school that sits at the edge of the Enchanted Forest.

Rachael:

He he he.

Dan:

And, aside from teaching magic, I am so worried about Shenanigans. Not for, about.

Finn:

I'm like, Jupiter is like, you can't sit him next to the shenanigan child because he starts acting up.

Dan:

Yes, Shenanigans?

Rachael:

I need to go to the bathroom.

Dan:

No you don't.

Rachael:

Yes, I do! I'm gonna pee my pants!

Dan:

Then you better hurry, you're about to go to the forest. There's no bathrooms in the Forest.

Rachael:

I'll be right back then, hold on.

Dan:

Okay. Okay.