Leveling Up After the Blob Encounter

Summary

Following the successful befriending of Thunk the blob creature in Session 4 of the campaign, the party completes their intercession questions and discovers that both Sucks and Vasso have accumulated enough experience points to advance to the next level. Sucks levels up first, selecting the Shoe advanced move and increasing his dexterity from -1 to 0. Vasso then levels up by taking the Divine Favor advanced move, dedicating himself to the Earth Mother deity from his commune. This grants Vasso the Commune and Cast a Spell cleric moves, making him the campaign's first spellcaster—a significant milestone that fundamentally changes the party's tactical capabilities with the addition of divine magic.

Details

After completing the investigation of Thunk and answering all intercession questions, Shawn announces: "Okay, so that's all the intercession questions. If somebody has nine experience points, they can level up."

Abdul responds immediately: "I can level up." When Shawn expresses surprise at how quickly this has occurred—"You? Really? Already? Holy shit."—Abdul confirms that Sucks has accumulated the necessary experience. Sucks's level-up process moves remarkably quickly, with Shawn commenting, "Perfect. Okay. Damn, that was fucking speedrun," in reference to how swiftly Abdul makes his character advancement choices. Sucks selects the Shoe advanced move and improves his dexterity score from -1 to 0, representing increased agility and coordination.

Dayna then announces that Vasso is also ready to level up, stating: "I am going to go and be all like divine. What sits. Which was it? Divine favor." This choice represents a major narrative development, as Vasso formally dedicates himself to the Earth Mother deity from his commune background. Shawn explains the mechanical benefits: "So you gain the commune and cast a spell. Cleric moves. Whoa, you can cast spells now?"

The addition of spellcasting marks a historic moment for the campaign. Shawn reveals: "I've never actually had a spellcaster in a game of Dungeon World before," and announces to the group, "You guys got a spellcaster now." Vasso gains access to all rote spells (Light, Sanctify, Guidance) and can prepare two first-level spells per day after spending an hour in quiet communion. The available first-level spells include Speak with Dead, Detect Alignment, Magic Weapon, Cause Fear, and Sanctuary.

Dayna learns that spell selections can be changed each time communion is performed rather than being permanent choices, providing Vasso with tactical flexibility in spell preparation going forward.

Participants

Sucks — Levels up to gain the Shoe advanced move and increases dexterity from -1 to 0
Vasso — Levels up by taking Divine Favor, becoming the campaign's first spellcaster with access to cleric moves
Abdul — Makes character advancement choices for Sucks in what Shawn calls a "speedrun" level-up
Dayna — Makes character advancement choices for Vasso, selecting the divine magic path
Shawn — Explains the mechanical benefits of the advanced moves and spell system, noting this is the first spellcaster in any of their Dungeon World games
Thunk — The blob creature whose befriending provided the experience points that triggered these level-ups

Consequences

Sucks gains the Shoe advanced move, expanding his tactical options in combat and exploration
Sucks's dexterity increases from -1 to 0, improving his ability to perform agile actions and avoid danger
Vasso gains the Commune move, allowing spell preparation through an hour of quiet communion with the Earth Mother
Vasso gains the Cast a Spell move, making him function as a level one cleric with access to divine magic
Vasso can now cast all rote spells (Light, Sanctify, Guidance) at will without preparation
Vasso can prepare two first-level spells per day from a selection that includes Speak with Dead, Detect Alignment, Magic Weapon, Cause Fear, and Sanctuary
The party gains access to divine magic for the first time, fundamentally altering their tactical capabilities and problem-solving options
Vasso's spell selections can be changed daily during communion, providing tactical flexibility based on anticipated challenges
The campaign reaches a milestone as the first Dungeon World game Shawn has run that includes a spellcaster