Annotated 21-13
In fairness, I’m not sure what Braggadocio considers a “meager meal.”
We could’ve done more with his previously-established hearing problem, especially in a crowded, raucous environment like this one. I can certainly relate to anyone who has trouble picking voices out of a crowd: that was an issue for me even as a teenager. In the old comments, Phil made the plausible excuse that Byron knew to speak at the right volume, but I still wish we’d addressed it more explicitly here and elsewhere.
Even though Byron understands the value of steady work, I don’t think he’s realized until just now that one of his old colleagues might consider him “no longer a freelancer.” He identifies so strongly as a “professional ax-swinger” that despite his awareness of the higher stakes the Peacemakers are playing for, sometimes he has to step back and take a fresh look at himself.
As I’ve mentioned a billion times in these comments before, though the gnolls of GA are not the same as the gnolls from D&D, I will still cite from 5e, as it might be enlightening.
A gnoll’s average natural lifespan is 30 years, reaching maturity at 5 and not feeling the effects of old age until the last few months of their life.