Roll, Ponder, and Play - Dramatized Solo Roleplay

Previously:  In our previous episode, at the zenith of her despair, Eilwen draws strength by feeding her anger at those who would slay the innocent for their nefarious and dark magics. She and Aron and Kyffin manage to barely escape from Edris's clutches and those of his leather-winged minions by fleeing through a rusty trap door near their feet and nearly falling down a metal ladder into the dark...

Previously:  In our previous episode, Eilwen, Aron, and Kyffin continue to press through the pass, but the constant snow combined with blasting winds, strong enough to strip shards ice and flakes of sharp rock from the narrow canyon walls forces them to look for shelter or be flayed and frozen alive. They find a crumbling tower and hurry inside, grateful for the protection it offers from the slash...

Previously: In our previous episode, Eilwen, Aron, and Kyffin continue their journey to the mountain pass. There, amid the gray, ice-rimed cliffs, they find a body of a humanoid with a cracked wooden mask of curious design and ruined weapons and armor of fine make. The human-like being, is clearly not human and its missing eyes, and open chest cavity, reveal it is missing its organs. In addition,...

Previously  In our previous episode,  Drystan and Kyffin find Eilwen at Frostbridge. The two men had arrived the night of the attack after seen the smoke from Drystan's home on the outskirts of the settlement where Kyffin had been convalescing. As they arrive, Frostbridge is holding a ceremony of remembrance, and while the bonfire burns, and the people mourn their fallen, Kyffin asks to travel wit...

About this Podcast Series: At the edge of known space, the UASN Oracle, a military destroyer turned science vessel, begins a survey mission in an unexplored star system. In the face a dire threat to all of humanity, Ardelle Leath, a junior officer, on board the Oracle, will struggle to overcome her past and fulfill her duty to the United Alliance Space Navy (UASN) as leadership is thrust upon her....

About this Podcast Series: At the edge of known space, the UASN Oracle, a military destroyer turned science vessel, begins a survey mission in an unexplored star system. In the face a dire threat to all of humanity, Ardelle Leath, a junior officer, on board the Oracle, will struggle to overcome her past and fulfill her duty to the United Alliance Space Navy (UASN) as leadership is thrust upon her....

Previously In our previous episode, Eilwen, Aron, and Cadfael race back to Frostbridge to find it beset by some enemy. Several buildings are ablaze, and the corpses of the fallen are in the streets offering visceral witness to the violence done to them. They find Mabon cornered by a spirit-possessed blacksmith Gwili, one of the men who had been on burial duty, and who now bore the octagonal ring t...

Previously In our previous episode, Eilwen rests and recuperates after her duel with Belvan and makes preparations for the journey through the mountains to the burial chamber Belvan had infiltrated. Her father reminds her that it is a place of death and is what led to her mother's illness and subsequent demise. On the morrow, Eilwen reveals herself to Mabon and to Frostbridge as the rightful heir...

Previously: In our previous episode, Eilwen, Aron, Cadfael, and Mabon, Chieftain of Frostbridge, escape the mine and make it to Rockriver's ruins where they rest and recuperate. They journey back to Frostbridge and find that Belvan isn't there.  During the feasting that ensured upon Mabon's return, Carys, the old crone, tells Eilwen that Belvan went looking for the burial chambers that Eilwen's mo...

Previously:   In our previous episode, Eilwen, Aron, Cadfael, and Mabon enter the mine in an attempt to get away from the Wolf Fang warriors and return to Rockriver and then Frostrbridge. After a few hours, they recross the rope bridge and navigate the mine's dark tunnels and reach the edge of the dark underground lake. Eilwen shows the lake-side skeleton to Cadfael and Mabon and is about to resum...

Previously:  In our previous episode, in the dead of night, Eilwen spots, within the Wolf Fang Clan raiding party's encampment, her Father, Cadfael, and Frostbridge Chiefton Mabon in a wooden cage with some old women. She awakens Aron and they get a closer look. When they see that only one sentry is on duty, guarding the cage, she and Aron decide they won't get a better chance to rescue the two me...

Previously: In our previous episode, Eilwen and Aron find a sheltered spot with an overhang, largely obscured from view where they can see the valley below. They prepare for the Wolf Fang raiders to circle the mountain and come into view. Eilwen goes hunting and nearly falls to ruin when she encounters a pack of hungry wolves that chase her onto an slippery log over a ravine. She manages to escape...

Previously: In our previous episode, Eilwen and Aaron leave behind Drystan behind in Rockriver with instructions for him to care for Kyffin so that they can move more quickly through the mines and get ahead of the Wolf Fang warriors and their prisoners. They find the mine entrance one valley over to the west and enter it about mid-morning. In the timeless dark, they find a large underground lake a...

Previously: In our previous episode, Eilwen, Aron, and Drystan arrive safely at Rockriver, however they find that the town has been attacked and half burned to the ground, its inhabitants dead or missing. They aid one of the wounded survivors, a man named Kyffin. He tells them that the town was attacked by none other than Uzak an erstwhile and now exiled member of the Frostbridge settlement who ha...

Previously: In our previous episode, Eilwen chases the retreating figure and ends up in a clearing where she finds ancient stone blocks and two strange iron pillars. She investigates the pillars, and to her surprise, realizes she can read at least some of the angular runes on their faces. She remembers how her mother had taught her the skill through a deep study of the iron disks. At the base of o...

Previously:  In our previous episode, Eilwen and her twin brother, Aron, meet with Drystan, a member of the Frostbridge community. They manage to convince the large man to aid them in their search for Mabon, the missing chieftain of Frostbridge and Cadfael, their missing father. Drystan agrees and brings his sleds and dogs so they can travel more quickly over the snow. During their travels, Eilwen...

Previously: In our previous episode, Eilwen her twin brother Aron, both 18 years old, find out their father and Chief Mabon have not returned from their morning hunt. Eilwen vows to find them and she and Aron gather supplies in preparation. Before they can set out however, a huge silverback bear enters Frostbridge hoping for an easy meal. In the ensuing fight, two members of the community are slai...

Previously: In our previous episode, the prologue, Eilwen and her twin brother Aron were both only 15 years of age. They discover that Eilwen's ailing mother has kept in her possession for many years, a finely carved box, and in that box is a cloven crown of gold with a crimson ruby shorn down the middle. This is the lost crown of the royal line of Queens from generations ago when these lands were...

Previously: In our previous episode (our "Session 0" if you will), we met Eilwen, our main character and protagonist, a young huntress of Frostbridge in her late teens. We found out that Frostbridge, Eilwen's settlement, is a failing mining settlement deep in the cold and snow-ridden wilderness of the Veiled Mountains. We learned that Eilwen is daughter to her mother, Arwed and to her father Cadfa...

Previously: In my previous upload to this podcast (I can't call it an episode really), I described the origin and impetus for the Queen of Shadows podcast series. And now, onto episode 0 where we will discover our character and do some world building. Ways to Show Support: Join my patreon for free at https://patreon.com/rollponderandplay  or as a paid subscriber and get additional additional conte...

Welcome to my very first ever podcast, the Queen of Shadows, a multi-part and as of 2025 ongoing episodic (and epic) work of fiction where I, Jared Hess, your friendly neighborhood game master, solo-player, author, and narrator bring to life the story of our protagonist, Eilwen, a huntress from the faraway settlement of Frostbridge in the Veiled Mountains. Ways to Show Support: Join my patreon for...