The Cheese That Rolled Away

The adventure, scene by scene

1. 

   Scene 1

   The Runaway Round

   Read this aloud

   Morning sun spills over Wheyford Hill. You stand in the yard of Rindwell Dairy, and it smells of warm milk and hay. Then someone shouts. "No, no, NO!" Odile Rindwell, the cheesemaker, runs out of the barn with her sleeves rolled up. "My Great Round!" she cries. "Two years I spent making that cheese. It bounced off the cart and rolled away. The fair judges it at noon!"

   New rule: what does your hero try?

   Ask each player in turn: what does your hero try? Any answer is a good one, so tell them what happens and move on to the next player. Nobody rolls dice yet.

   What do the heroes try?

   • Ask Odile what happened No roll needed

     No roll needed

     Odile saw three things. The cheese hopped off the cart at the gate. It went bouncing down Hedge Lane like a runaway wheel. Then she heard a crash and a very cross mule. "Follow the lane," she says. "And please hurry."

     Nearly!

     If nobody can think of a question, Odile tells the heroes the three things anyway and pushes a loaf of bread into someone's arms. "For the road," she says.

   • Look down the hill No roll needed

     No roll needed

     A long stripe of flattened grass runs straight down the hill to Hedge Lane. Far below, a hay cart sits crooked in the lane, and a mule is braying.

     Nearly!

     If nobody looks, Odile points instead. "There. See the squashed grass? That's my cheese, that is."

   Notes for the guide

   What the heroes want: Find out where the Great Round went.

   Odile is brisk, proud and flustered, never cross with the heroes. The Great Round is as wide as a cartwheel and as hard as a drum, so it bounced all the way to the bottom of the hill without breaking. This scene has no rolls: whatever the heroes try works. Let every player say one thing their hero does, then send them down Hedge Lane.

   Questions to ask

   • Ask each player in turn: Odile lets every hero take one thing from the dairy for the chase. What does your hero take? Whatever they take can help later. A crust of bread or a handful of clover is perfect for the tortoise at Clover Hollow.

   Where they are on the map

2. 

   Scene 2

   The Stuck Cart

   Read this aloud

   Hedge Lane is narrow, with tall green hedges on both sides. Halfway down, a hay cart blocks the way. One wheel is sunk deep in the ditch. A grey mule stands in front with her ears flat back, and she will not budge. The carter, Ivo Teasel, scratches his head. "Your cheese came flying round the bend," he says. "Parsnip jumped, and now we're stuck."

   New rule: Brave, Clever, Kind

   Every hero has three traits: Brave for daring, Clever for tricks, Kind for talking and caring. Ask which trait this plan uses; the hero card shows +2 in one trait and +1 in the other two. Nobody rolls yet.

   What do the heroes try?

   • A Brave way: lift the wheel out No roll needed

     No roll needed

     Two heroes heave, Ivo pushes, and the wheel comes out of the ditch with a loud squelch. Muddy boots all round, and the lane is clear.

     Nearly!

     If nobody wants to lift, Ivo spits on his hands and tries alone. A hero always jumps in to help in the end, and out it comes.

   • A Kind way: calm Parsnip down No roll needed

     No roll needed

     Parsnip's ears come up. She sniffs a hand, snorts, and leans into her harness. The cart rolls free.

     Nearly!

     Parsnip stamps and huffs, but a carrot from Ivo's pocket does the trick. She pulls, slowly and grumpily, and the cart rolls free.

   Notes for the guide

   What the heroes want: Get the cart out of the ditch so everyone can pass.

   Ivo is cheerful and slow to talk. Parsnip is a mule with opinions. This scene is for meeting the three traits, not for rolling: whatever plan the heroes pick works, and the trait it uses tells you who gets to shine. A Brave plan lifts, a Clever plan uses the plank, a Kind plan calms Parsnip. When the cart is free, Ivo points at a round hole punched through the hedge. The cheese went that way, toward the Chatter Brook.

   Questions to ask

   • Ask the table: Ivo has a long plank in the back of his cart. Can anyone think of a Clever way to use it? A plank under the wheel makes a lever. Say yes: that is the Clever way, and it works.

   Where they are on the map

3. 

   Scene 3

   The Chatter Brook

   Read this aloud

   Through the hole in the hedge, the grass slopes down to a quick, shallow river. It chatters over the rocks, loud and cheerful. A row of stepping stones crosses it, green with slippery moss. On the far bank, a muddy track climbs out of the water. Something big and round went this way. Some stones look steady. Others wobble every time the water hits them.

   New rule: rolling the d20

   Now ask what the hero tries, then have them roll the d20 and add the trait. Meet or beat the number for how hard it is: 8 easy, 10 normal, 12 tricky, 14 hard. A miss never stops the story.

   What do the heroes try?

   • Hop across fast Brave: roll 10 or more

     Made it!

     Hop, hop, hop. You land on the far bank with dry boots and a big grin.

     Nearly!

     Splash! A stone tips, and you land knee-deep in cold water. You wade the rest of the way, squelching, but you are across.

   • Pick the steady stones Clever: roll 8 or more

     Made it!

     The steady stones are the ones with dry tops. You point the way, and everyone crosses one careful step at a time.

     Nearly!

     You pick a wobbly one by mistake and wave your arms like a windmill. A friend grabs your sleeve. Wet feet, but you are across.

   Notes for the guide

   What the heroes want: Get everyone across the river.

   This is the first roll of the game, so slow down and do it together. Each way's scene card tells the player which trait fits. Say the number out loud, let the player roll and add their trait, then say "made it" or "not this time". Either way the hero gets across: a miss only means wet boots. If someone thinks of a Kind way, such as helping a friend over, say yes and call it Kind, DN 8. On the far bank, the cheese's muddy track leads to the top of a steep gorse bank.

   Questions to ask

   • Ask each player in turn: How does your hero keep their balance on the slippery stones?

   Where they are on the map

4. 

   Scene 4

   The Gorse Bank

   Read this aloud

   Past the river, the track runs down a steep bank of gorse. Gorse is a prickly bush covered in yellow flowers. In the sun it smells like coconut. The cheese has smashed a tunnel right through it. Thorns poke out on every side. Loose stones clatter away under your boots. At the bottom you can see a green hollow full of clover. Something down there is snoring.

   New rule: Heart Points

   Every hero starts with 8 Heart Points. A miss here costs one or two; at 0 a hero is worn out, never hurt, and cheers from the side. Before the next scene, everyone rests and gets all their Heart Points back.

   What do the heroes try?

   • Push straight through Brave: roll 10 or more

     Made it!

     You shove through the cheese's tunnel with your arms over your face and pop out at the bottom with nothing worse than yellow petals in your hair.

     Nearly!

     Ouch. The thorns catch your sleeves and scratch your arms. Cross off 2 Heart Points. You still reach the bottom, prickly and puffing.

   • Find the rabbit path Clever: roll 8 or more

     Made it!

     A rabbit path zigzags down between the bushes. You follow it and reach the bottom without a single scratch.

     Nearly!

     The rabbit path ends in loose stones, and you slide the last stretch on your backside. Cross off 1 Heart Point and dust yourself off.

   Notes for the guide

   What the heroes want: Get down the gorse bank to Clover Hollow.

   This scene shows getting hurt without a fight. A miss crosses off Heart Points on the hero card. Nobody is in real danger: a hero who reaches 0 is worn out, sits on a rock and cheers until the scene ends. At the bottom the heroes rest for a moment, and every hero starts the next scene with all 8 Heart Points back. The snoring comes from Ambletoe, in the hollow below.

   Questions to ask

   • Ask the quietest player: At the bottom, the heroes stop to catch their breath. What does your hero do while everyone rests? This is the rest. When they finish, every hero is back to 8 Heart Points.

   Where they are on the map

5. 

   Scene 5

   Clover Hollow

   Read this aloud

   Clover Hollow is warm and green and buzzing with bees. In the middle sits a hill that is not a hill. It is a tortoise as big as a hay cart, with daisies growing on its shell. Tucked under the front of that shell is the Great Round. You step closer. The huge head pulls in with a hiss, and the whole shell trembles.

   New rule: talking or sneaking past

   Some players reach for a weapon here. Remind the table that a fight is never the only way: heroes can talk, help or sneak past instead. Those ways use Kind or Clever, and they are never harder than a fight.

   What do the heroes try?

   • Talk softly Kind: roll 8 or more Leads to If you made friends.

     Made it!

     Slowly, a wrinkled head peeks out. Two old, gentle eyes blink at you. "Not... cross?" it rumbles. Read "If you made friends."

     Nearly!

     The head stays in, but the hissing stops. The heroes can try again with something else kind: a song, a snack, a gentle pat on the shell. The second kind try needs no roll.

   • Sneak the cheese out Clever: roll 10 or more Leads to If you slipped it out.

     Made it!

     Inch by inch, you ease the Great Round out from under the shell. The tortoise never stirs. Read "If you slipped it out."

     Nearly!

     The cheese scrapes on a stone. The shell jumps, and out pops a blinking head. Now the heroes can talk to it instead, and talking softly needs no roll.

   How it ends

   Read the ending that happened, then the homecoming.

   If you made friends.

   Ambletoe stretches out its long neck and sniffs you, very slowly. "Cheese... rolled... on my foot," it rumbles. "Stuck. All morning." Together you lift the Great Round, and the tortoise wiggles its toes with a happy sigh. It nudges the cheese toward you with its nose. "Yours," it says. "Smells... wonderful."

   If you helped it.

   You heave the Great Round up off the trapped foot. Ambletoe pulls its foot free and wiggles its toes. Out comes the old head, smiling a slow tortoise smile. "Thank... you," it rumbles. "Stuck... all morning." It picks a clover flower with its beak. Then it drops the flower on the cheese, like a prize ribbon.

   If you slipped it out.

   You roll the Great Round up and out of the hollow. Behind you comes a long, happy sigh. The cheese had been sitting on the tortoise's foot all morning. Ambletoe stretches, wiggles its toes and pokes its head out to watch you go. It blinks once, very slowly. Somehow, it looks like a thank you.

   Homecoming

   Every ending: back to Wheyford.

   You roll the Great Round onto the village green just as the bell rings noon. Odile hugs the cheese. The judges taste it and pin on a blue ribbon. Ivo and Parsnip trot in with the hay cart, and the whole fair cheers. Later, a hill that is not a hill wanders up the lane to watch.

   Notes for the guide

   What the heroes want: Get the Great Round back from under Ambletoe's shell.

   Ambletoe is a very old, very slow hill tortoise who naps in Clover Hollow. The Great Round rolled down the gorse bank and landed on its front foot, and it has been stuck and frightened all morning. That is the secret, and every ending lets the heroes find it. It hisses only because it is scared. If a hero swings a weapon, Ambletoe pulls in tighter: hitting its shell means beating its Guard of 14, harder than talking at 8 or sneaking at 10, and it gets nobody anywhere. When it is over, read the ending that happened, then the homecoming.

   Questions to ask

   • Ask the table: Look closely at the tortoise. What does your hero notice? Its front foot is pinned under the cheese, and it cannot pull free. A hero who offers to lift the cheese off its foot needs no roll. Read "If you helped it."

   Where they are on the map