Gelatinous Cube - Episode 20 (Off Week)

TRAVIS: What can I see, out to 60 feet?
MATT: Out to 60 feet, you see the interior, it's this angle, an odd swerving feel, and it is a greased chamber.
TRAVIS: Uh-huh?
MATT: You can see the streaks of whatever the grease was. Your back is all slick from it. You look at the ground, and it's this semi-translucent, like a hard jello floor.
LAURA: Uh-oh.
TALIESIN: Uh-oh.
TRAVIS: (laughs)
TALIESIN: We got to get that down real quick.
TRAVIS: Uh. I take out some-- I look at the wall that I just fell from. Is it earth, is it stone?
MATT: It's slick stone.
TRAVIS: Slick stone, okay. I take out the climbing equipment that we just bought at that fucking store.
MARISHA: Can we throw down a rope?
LAURA: Yeah, that's what I was going to do. I was going to run over and start dropping down a rope down the--
TRAVIS: I take out one of the pittens, pitons, or whatever, and I'll start trying to hit, right at my chest level into the stone, just to get one piton to maybe put a foot on.
MATT: Okay, make a strength check for me as you do that, as you start hammering it, and you're getting your rope out--
LAURA: Yeah, to lower down.
MATT: How much rope do you have?
LAURA: Well, I have a--
TRAVIS: Natural 20.
MATT: Hell yeah. (metallic clanging) You hammer the piton, as it sticks into the stone, you see it cracks a little bit and slides in a couple inches and feels like it's pretty solid. It was about this time that you notice your feet are going a little numb, because you've sunken a few inches into the ground, and you glance down and the jello that you're on is pulling you in. (slurping)
TRAVIS: Could I grab the piton then try and pull myself up to put a foot up?
MATT: I need you to make a dexterity saving throw for me.
TRAVIS: Okay, okay, okay.
SAM: We got to get down there.
MARISHA: It's made of slime.
TRAVIS: Dexterity saving throw.
LAURA: Can you shoot your grappling hook down there?
TRAVIS: 13.
MATT: 13.
SAM: I can't, it doesn't--
MATT: You manage to pull your legs free.
LIAM: I'll go down.
MATT: On this piton, but you're still holding onto a piton in the middle of the stone floor and it's right there and you see it's still moving up. So what are you going to do?
TRAVIS: I was going to try and-- I'll turn into a fucking (growling, crunching) I'll turn into a werewolf.
MARISHA: Good idea.
MATT: Okay.
LAURA: Nice, nice, nice.
TRAVIS: I'm going to sink whatever claws I can into the wall and try and pull myself up and put one foot on the piton. So I'm at least out of contact, even if I'm just balancing one damn leg with claws on the wall on a piton.
MATT: Okay. I will say for this, make an acrobatics check.
TRAVIS: Okay.
MATT: Because you and the wall are both greased.
TRAVIS: Oh.
MATT: This is a very, very slick surface. The only thing that's giving you any leverage is this small little piton on the ground. So roll acrobatics for me.
TRAVIS: Oh, not good (laughs). Four.
MATT: (laughs) So the grease has dripped down onto the piton. As you step up onto it, you're not getting any purchase. Then your foot slips, you fall back (thuds), your back slaps onto this creature.

Campaign 3 Episode 20, "Breaking and Entering...," April 14, 2022
Thanks to critrole.fandom.com for the transcript from the episode shown above.

Gelatinous Cube

There's jello down there.

I don't like gelatinous cubes when I play D&D. They're terrifying. I fought one once, and... I'm good. But I do like Jell-o! This week's recipe is more of a craft than it is an actual recipe. Because you can straight up just follow the instructions on the box, but the fun comes in when you start to decorate your cubes! I was hoping that this might come up around Halloween time because SweetTarts makes skeleton-shaped candy, like little bones and skulls and those are PERFECT for gelatinous cube fillings. So I didn't have any skull candy on hand, but I did have some mini Starburst, so I made it work. 

There are lots of pictures of gelatinous cubes, but most of the time they are a shade of green. Mine are blue because that was the Jell-o we had on hand. Ours are also Ocean Water flavor - again because it's what we had. Anyway, who's ready to make Jell-o?

Ingredients

• 1 box of Jell-o
• Boiling water
• Cold Water

You'll also need square-shaped plasticware/Tupperware containers. My local grocery store had little individual containers and they happened to be square-shaped. But I think you could probably find something similar either at your local store or online. You could use circles, but then you'd have gelatinous cylinders, not cubes. 

Directions

I used the instructions that were not the "standard," but the ones that were for pouring Jell-o into a mold or making specific shapes or something. I forget what those directions were called, but they were on the box. Here's what my instructions were in case yours doesn't have the info:

1. Mix 1.5 cups boiling water with the Jell-o mix for about 2 minutes.
2. Add in 1 cup of cold water and stir well
3. Spray Jell-o molds with cooking spray (to help the Jell-o get out easier)
4. Fill the molds and refrigerate for at least 4 hours
5. Use a knife or toothpick to separate the Jell-o from the side of the mold. You can also dip the mold in water for 5-10 seconds to loosen the Jell-O. Then remove Jell-o from the mold
6. Decorate!

For decorating we used toothpicks angled to look like sword blades, but they also make toothpicks shaped like swords that you could totally buy. Make sure they're easily visible so you don't accidentally bite into one! For extra fun, stick candy into the cube's "bottom" then turn it over to hide the holes.

And remember, use whatever flavor you like the best. Who cares what color they are 'supposed' to be. You do you. 

In Conclusion...

One of my partner's favorite flavors is Ocean Water, so these were good. And putting candy in them made it even more fun. We stood one of his minis on top for decoration, which I thought was a cute touch!

Let me know if you try making some cubes of your own! And, if you have any questions or suggestions, or just wanna say hi, all of those things can go in the comments below. You can also follow me on Pinterest , Twitter, or Instagram if you like using those platforms. Thanks for visiting, and don't forget to love each other. Is it Thursday, yet?

Weird slimy floor, with all manger of bones free-floating within it.

Original character art by Hannah at @agarthanguide on Twitter.