Do Dragons Dream Of Scorched Sheep? - A Dungeons & Dragons Podcast · Modern Escapism

Ep 8 - Palace of Spiders

·1 hr 31 min·5 clips

Gadget reveals this D&D podcast is adapted from Jilly Cooper novels, blending fantasy with unexpected humor.

This episode follows the Dungeons & Dragons party as they enter the hidden ice city of Zalrathus. The host and Dungeon Master is Gadget, joined by players Stig, Oodles, Biggie, and Candy portraying their respective characters. The characters include Jed Hadrow, Loic Sunforge, Saxi Fjandjen, and Robin T. Leaf, each with dramatic personal backgrounds inspired by romance novel archetypes. The party seeks shelter within the city after their battle with a yeti and multiple cave-ins. They encounter the city's ruler, the Spider Queen, who governs from her palace woven from giant webs. A tense audience with the Spider Queen reveals she knows of their quest for the Frost Diamond. She offers the party a deal to retrieve a stolen artifact called the Weave-Singer's Loom from rival spider-folk in exchange for safe passage and information. The Spider Queen provides them with a guide, a silent drider named K'thriss. Negotiations involve the potential sacrifice of the party's mascot, a pseudodragon named Puff. The palace itself is described as a labyrinth of sticky corridors and chambers suspended over a deep chasm. Sounds of skittering and distant, rhythmic clicking echo constantly throughout the scenes. One memorable moment involves Loic Sunforge attempting to flirt with a guard, only to learn the guard's species consumes its mates. The Spider Queen claims the Frost Diamond was stolen centuries ago by a "sun-worshipping cult," which contradicts the party's previous information. Insights include the political structure of Zalrathus, which operates as a matriarchal theocracy under the Spider Queen's rule. The guide K'thriss communicates entirely through expressive hand gestures and elaborate tapestries it carries. The tone is a comedic and melodramatic blend of high fantasy adventure and soap opera romance. The style is heavily improvisational, with players leaning into their characters' exaggerated personalities and flaws. Listeners who enjoy character-driven humor and campy, dramatic roleplay within a D&D framework will love this episode. Those who prefer serious, rules-heavy tactical gameplay or minimal narrative embellishment might skip it.

As heard by us

A frozen rescue becomes a rowdy court scene with real comic momentum.

Ep 8 pushes the party from the gorge into Xalrathus, the hidden city under the ice, and the best part is how often the table knocks the wind out of its own reveal.

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Why you'd press play

Press play for a cave escape that ends at the gates of Xalrathus, a hidden city under the ice.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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