Money Pumpkin Field

Summary

The Money Pumpkin Field is a large cultivated clearing discovered by the party in Session 5 while traveling to New Smoke. The field contains numerous Money Pumpkins—valuable plants whose seeds serve as currency for trade—spread across rolling grassland terrain between two hills. When the party rounds a bend in the road, they encounter a field that extends at least 50-60 feet and appears remarkably tidy and healthy, suggesting active cultivation rather than wild growth. The pristine condition of the pumpkins, despite their obvious value, hints at a dangerous guardian preventing harvest. At the center of the field lives a Gordian—a hostile pumpkin-like creature that has created the field's exceptional fertility through a predatory cycle: it kills creatures that enter the field, and their decomposing bodies fertilize the soil, creating an increasingly lush patch that attracts more prey.

Description

The field occupies a dell or thread between two hills in the grassland terrain, discovered when the party comes around a large boulder set next to the trail. The clearing is described as "absolutely full of fruiting plants," with big, ripe pumpkins that look remarkably healthy and almost untouched. The terrain within the field features hills and dells, with pumpkins large enough that Sucks can hop over them and disappear behind them when moving through the field. The pumpkins are described as healthy enough to jump over, though some get smashed during combat as party members run through the patch.

The field's tidy appearance and the pristine condition of the pumpkins suggest deliberate cultivation. As noted during the session, "It's very unlikely that this huge field of pumpkins is, like, totally wild because it's almost untouched, and it's very, very tidy. All of the pumpkins look really healthy." The center of the field initially appears to have pumpkins cleared away, revealing the Pumpkin Creature more clearly as combat progresses, though the creature is roughly the same size as the pumpkins around it and can pull itself through the field.

History

Session 5

While scouting ahead, Sucks and Cat discover the massive field of money pumpkins as the party rounds a bend in the road. The party recognizes the value of the pumpkins, as their seeds are used as currency, but also observes that "whatever is in the middle of this field might be the reason that the pumpkins haven't been disturbed to a greater degree."

The field becomes a combat zone when the party engages the Gordian living at its center. Sucks runs back and forth in circles through the field, dodging pumpkins that the creature throws as projectiles. During the combat, party members "dodge, duck, and weave between pumpkins while the creature hurls them as weapons." Vasso charges through the field, "jumping over healthy pumpkins, smashing a couple as you run," attempting to reach the creature. The Gordian uses the pumpkins themselves as weapons, wielding them on vines like meteor hammers.

The party learns that the field's exceptional fertility results from the creature's predatory behavior. Gordians "tend to live inside of or patches" and "usually end up in the middle of a particularly lush patch because they kill whatever they can get a hold of, and then it decomposes into the fields and creates, like, a natural fertilizer." This creates a self-perpetuating cycle where the lush patch attracts more prey, which in turn creates more fertilizer when killed.

Session 6

Following their defeat of the Gordian, the party camps in the field to harvest the valuable pumpkins. Having already collected 200 coins worth of pumpkin seeds, they now focus on gathering pumpkin meat and additional produce to help address the food shortage at New Smoke. Sucks observes the situation: "We're surrounded by food."

The field presents a logistical challenge regarding cart capacity. The party must decide what to prioritize for transport given their limited space. During discussions about managing the harvest, they consider transforming Goober into a more efficient collection mechanism. One member proposes: "You should make him look like a trash can because then we could just dump all this pumpkin stuff into him and he'll subsume it. Then just become a bigger trash can."

The field serves as the location where the party experiments with Goober's capabilities, testing whether the creature can consume and process pumpkin matter directly. During their encampment, the party creates pumpkin snowmen dressed in sweaters as decoys, arranging these figures around their position. The GM describes the scene: "There's four stacks of three pumpkins kind of randomly arrayed around you."

Notable Features

• Rolling terrain with hills and dells providing tactical cover during combat
• Large, healthy money pumpkins representing significant potential wealth, with seeds worth 200 coins harvested by the party
• Cultivated appearance suggesting active farming rather than wild growth
• Central clearing where pumpkins have been cleared away around the Gordian
• Natural fertilization cycle created by decomposing prey killed by the resident creature
• Pumpkins used as cover large enough to hide behind during combat
• Dangerous guardian preventing harvest of the valuable crop until defeated
• Location on the road positioned between two hills near a large boulder by the trail, approximately one day's travel from New Smoke
• Strategic camping ground offering sufficient space for the party to establish camp while harvesting