Page 598 — What Lies Beneath

As fantasy worlds go, it's fun to imagine that beneath the cutesy veneer of Equestria there's danger and magic and dangerous magic mere miles from any given settlement. And you still have cute stuff not only for juxtaposition but for its own sake. That's honestly one of the things that makes Equestria amazing as a game setting: It easily supports happiness and cute and still has the emotional room for the rest of the roleplaying spectrum.

But maybe let's give other systems and settings some credit. Tell a story about a time you encountered something cute and colorful in a different setting? (Bonus points if it wasn't played for laughs/creepy factor and actually fit in well without being jarring.)

DM: By this point, several earth ponies in the audience show signs of stress and fatigue… while some of the pegasi look almost too healthy.
Twilight Sparkle: Alright, then. We don't have time to lecture them; we'll just send them home. Pinkie, can you make sure that the whole tomb thing gets around by word of mouth?
Pinkie Pie: I can do that with Streetwise??
DM: That'd actually be more of a Bluff ability – to make the outrageous seem plausible.
Rarity: Odd choice, but I'll make it work. <roll>
DM: That should get the rumor mill turning. In the meantime, the crowd disperses so that you can get to work. Following the logical shape of the terrain, it's not long before you uncover a secret trapdoor, revealing a staircase leading deep into the ground.
Applejack: So lemme get this straight. By engagin' in a friendly contest, we activated somethin' down there with a grudge against earth ponies?
Rainbow Dash: And a love of pegasi! Gotta remember the positives.