By Alex Groom (Elouan of Rhiassa)
Photos by Justin "Dresden" Theriault
Despite arriving about 15 minutes early, food was already being served. I quickly helped myself to a cheeseburger (topped with BBQ sauce). Throughout the day, I would also help myself to veggie kebabs. While not on the menu, Jean Baptiste was selling jerky, and I can’t say no to Baptiste Butchery jerky (the key is to just enjoy it, and not think about it too much). This particular batch was made with whiskey, and you could definitely taste it. I can honestly say it was one of the best jerkies I’ve ever eaten (admittedly, I am a sucker for whiskey.) I was informed that Baptiste Butchery would be at ToC with more jerky, and would in fact be taking custom orders as late as Tuesday, May 22nd. [Disclaimer: I do not hold any affiliation with Baptiste Butchery. I just really like jerky.]
About an hour after we arrived, Neden held a quick court. To start, Dresden, editor in chief of the Neden Kazoo, awarded kazoos to both myself and Asharn for having solved the monthly puzzles found in the Neden Kazoo. These kazoos were no mere kazoos, and in fact held the power to alter reality within the land of Neden (as long as said reality altering request was in the form of a headline). After this, Nymbous announced he was stepping down from his role as Lord of Neden, and handed off said responsibility to Duke (now Lord) Syruss O’leary. With that, court was adjourned, and we returned to the festivities.
Throughout the day, Neden offered a variety of festivities to partake in. A carnival ran all day; it offered plinko, and that game where you throw stuff at cans and try to knock them down. On top of the carnival, combat tournaments ran throughout the day. Success in either of these festivities led to one winning tickets, which could be used to try to win a variety of N-house items in a raffle that would occur at the end of the day.
There were also a variety of noncombat competitions. Particularly entertaining was an equestrian show that various members of the Realms could enter. This show consisted of a talent portion, an obstacle course, and a race. Quick aside: never lend Hanzo a horse; we learned the hard way that he has a tendency to ride them to death. Horse death aside, those of us attending found ourselves entertained by this display of aestheticism and athleticism. In the end, the talent portion was won by Fancy, and the obstacle course and race portion were both won by Asharn. For his success, Asharn won half a blue ribbon.
In addition to the equestrian show, there was an egg toss (the final throws of which were over improbable distances), a sack race, a pie eating contest, and a 3-legged combat race. Winners of these received “obscene amounts of tickets” (to quote the members of Neden).
The day was concluded with a raffle. Items included Baptiste’s Friendly Shovel of Banishment, the Wands of Healthy Living, the Orb of Truth(ish), and the Sticks of Cheerful Nihilism. However, the most sought item was the other half of the blue ribbon. When assembled, the blue ribbon would allow someone to undertake a ritual to turn an N-House magic item into a regular magic item. Temorse ended up winning the other half of the blue ribbon.
With that, the Neden BBQ concluded. Overall, it was a relaxing day of good food and merriment, and I already look forward to the next one.
