roll for it

Here is the result:

Travis spent the entirety of a climatic final combat, playing a character who can choose to deal intense burst damage in melee, taking actions that were less immediately rewarding and significantly less flashy to support the group starting from the very beginning. And, in the end, I am absolutely certain that Marine Layer + Eldritch Blast's 120ft range was CRUCIAL to their survival.

By breaking line of sight to Veth with Marine Layer, she was able to take zero damage from two attacks using Evasion, preventing her from going down a second time despite having only single digit hit points. He sheltered the clerics, which certainly kept them alive in those final rounds. While Veth was sheltered, it also gave her automatic Sneak Attack in a combat where Sam was having trouble meeting the requirements, something Travis verbally stated he understood and intended by moving next to Veth.

Focusing on sniping the eyes and destroying multiple of them likely bought them precious time with the reduced incoming damage and definitely saved the clerics because once Ira was destroyed, they could no longer be targeted at all within Marine Layer.

Even though it wasn't used in the end, setting Arcane Gate at either side of the field to make traversing an incredibly large area much easier if it was necessary to do so was clever. It opened up options, notably for Beau (even though she didn't take it), and was strong foresight, especially since their enemies could teleport that great distance with ease.

Travis holds on to his 5th-level spell slots for what at times feels like potential emergency Cure Wounds given how much he seems to calculate as people start to go down. It also allows him to heal some of them at the end, as a precaution.

It's a testament to Fjord's flexibility and versatility as a build, and to Travis' sharp awareness and tactical skill, that he does not perform a single Smite during that entire fight, but he remains sincerely and deeply key to maintaining their fighting chance. It's elegant. It's magnificent.

Sam: “Because I’m in snow, I’m assuming I can’t Uncanny Dodge this.”

Matt: “Still a natural 1.”

2. Jester, the little girl being stuck due to unfortunate circumstances in her house while her mother is working, and a trickster entitiy comes along to give her powers and help her explore the world.