The Precarious Retreat heads out of Sharn to the south, picking up altitude, before finally levelling out around 1000 feet. It has been only a couple of hours since you first arrived at House Medani, but it seems much longer.
Once you’ve cleared the outskirts of Sharn, the clouds begin to break up, and a cool winter sun rises high overhead.
The ship moves gracefully and swift through the clear skies, all of your gear stowed below in the common area, except for Sanne, who has occupied the guest cabin located next to Dalwir’s cabin below. On the horizon, you can see the Hilt, with the great ocean not too far beyond it.
You have noticed Dalwir giving orders to the crew of eight and piloting the ship out of Sharn, but he has now given up the helm to his second in command, a half-elf woman, of no more than 35 years. A more casual examination of him shows that he carries a rapier at his hip, along with a lute strung over his back, and there is no hiding his dragonmark – it has grown to such size that it is the largest you’ve ever seen, with corners poking out of sleeves and collars. He walks down from the stern platform of the ship, and approaches your group.
“Welcome aboard, mates’, ‘tis a fine time as any to be headed out over the great sea. I should have ye’ at Stormreach in about 3 days time. Thar be reports of a storm somewhere to the northwest o’ Stormreach, so we’ll be givin’ it a wide berth.”
“We don’t live fancy on the Precarious, but we do live well...”
“Feel free to wander the ship, hopefully this will be more like a pleasure cruise.”
“We’re well stocked with rum and ale belowdecks, and Francis is our on-board chef, one of the best in the House.”
The rest of the day passes uneventfully. The ground below has given way to the waves of the sea. After a hearty evening meal, the evening entertainment comprises of several of the crew playing various instruments and telling tales. The stories and music interweave together to such a degree, that it almost feels as though you are part of the story.
You sleep peacefully through the night.
Day 2 – 21 Zarantyr:
Morning breaks, and the smell of baked biscuits and fresh gravy rouse you from your slumber. You make your way to the source of the aroma and have your fill. You spend a fair amount of time above decks, peering overboard at the endless sea below you, noticing on occasion a group of whales here and there.
Around midday, the winds have risen to around gale force, and appear to be steadily increasing.
Dalwir exclaims,”Damn, I thought we’d miss it. ‘Tis too big to go ‘round, so we’ll need to go through.”
The captain appears to begin the casting of a spell, and you notice the tips of his dragonmark being to glow. He completes his task in about 10 minutes time, and over the next ten minutes, you notice that the winds begin to taper off, the clouds part, and you are now surrounded by calm, sunny skies, though you can still see the storm surrounding you in all directions on the horizon.
The rest of the day passes uneventfully.
After another amazing meal and evening of entertainment, you retire to your bunk and fall quickly asleep.
You are awoken to a clanging sound and shouts of “ALL HANDS ON DECK! ALL HANDS ON DECK!” When you eyes open, you notice that it is the middle of the night and the rest of the crew is hastily grabbing weeapons and heading up the stairs. You hear a loud thump come from directly above your bunks, where you remember the deck-mounted ballista was.
OOC: I need initiative and actions for all of you. You have awoken from sleep, so you are unarmored and weaponless, in your bunks below decks.
Hearing the shouts, Sanne grabs her combat gear and shuffles out the door, putting things on as she runs from her guest cabin to the source of the shouts.
"What's attacking us?" She asks the first crewman she sees.
OOC: What's safe to assume we 'slept in'? A lot of Sanne's magic items are protective light clothing or jewelery.
OOC: And how does this affect Aeranduil, since elves trance for four hours instead of sleep? (I think; Eberron could be different).
Aeranduil springs to his feet at the call to arms, grabbing for his bow, buckler and quiver of arrows. Thusly armed, he quickly moves to join the defenders above deck and find out what it going on.
Initiative +6
Aeranduil's items worn during trance:
- Clothing, Gloves of Dexterity +2, Ring of Protection +1, Boots of Striding & Springing, Cloak of Resistance +1
- If (as everyone notes) there is no penalty for sleeping in Mithril Shirt, I see no reason why Aeranduil wouldn't trance in it as well.
He will gather his bow, quiver of endless arrows, and buckler.
__________________ -Rhun
"I believe that imagination is stronger than knowledge - myth is more potent than history - dreams are more powerful than facts - hope always triumphs over experience - laughter is the cure for grief - love is stronger than death." -Robert Fulghum
Last edited by Rhun; 12th November 2007 at 10:17 PM..
The only crewmember Sanne sees before he sprints up the stairs has no idea what is attacking the ship.
I will need a list from each of you of:
1) What you wear while sleeping/trancing (i.e. that you never take off)
2) What items you are gathering before heading topside. (this will dictate how long it will take
I'm fairly lenient when it comes to what you sleep in, but armor/shields/weapons can't be slept/tranced(?) in/with.
"Ymir's cloven skull!" Voadam is a bit foggy upon waking and curses by the gods of his homeworld. Old habits die hard and dressed only in his undergarment he reaches for a spear that is not there. Upon realizing where he is Voadam curses again "Ymir's rotting carcass." and reaches for his magical backpack that carries all his current gear. Drawing his green sash with the spell component pouch he quickly wraps it around his waist and draws forth a piece of cured leather. The silver-haired wizard incants the verbal components to conjure a spirit suit of armor for himself then heads barefoot topside, ears straining to catch details, the backpack in one hand.
Ipshivi rarely seemed to sleep, and unlike most halflings she pretty much ignored the meals that they were presented. Instead, it seemed as if she spend most of her time exploring the ship or lounging in her small hammock, reading whatever books happened to be lying around (or otherwise available). At least, that seemed to be the way of things, for she was rarely visible, and only occasionally did she chuckle or make obvious sounds to signal her presence. At the sounds of alarm, it was easy enough to determine her location- one need only listen for the muttered cursing. Like the others, though, she was a seasoned adventurer, and despite her irritation she was quick enough to react.
OOC: Ipshivi likewise sleeps in her armor (mithril shirt)- when she sleeps at all. She usually takes her two hours a night either at sunset or just before sunrise. Most of her invocations last 24 hours and are reset at dawn- Entropic warding, see the unseen, and spiderwalk would all be running, though needing recasting at dawn. For the sake of convenience, her order of action is: 1. Invoke Walk Unseen, 2.grab Haversack, 3. Head for the deck to see what is going on- she can make an active Spot and Listen check each round as a free action instead it taking a move action as normal. Initiative roll (at +8= 17, roll: http://invisiblecastle.com/find.py?id=1369430 )
Rings, vest, gloves and mundane clothing (darkweave explorer's outfit) would basically be worn all the time- if she actually (for some reason) doesn't have her armor on (as it would normally be under at least one layer of clothing) she will do without; same for boots. Rod, bracers, thieves tools would all be in the haversack- she'll leave the rapier for now and rely on the dagger worn with her gear.
Last edited by pathfinderq1; 12th November 2007 at 10:43 PM..
Reason: added initiative roll
not worn/carried (will be grabbed immediately, before leaving her room; she will take the move action to put on her buckler)
- rapier, +1 shock
- buckler +1
mundane stuff grabbed
- infusion component pouch
definitely worn/carried at all times
- normal clothing
- ring of protection +1
- amulet of natural armor +1
- gloves of dexterity +2
- vest of resistance +1
worn/carried if allowed (but would not take time to put on)
- counterstrike bracers (she can use action points for ripostes if she needs to)
- mithral chain shirt +2 (5 rounds to don armor is too much time)
@drothgery: It's your call if you think Sanne would sleep in her armor/wear the bracers.
Hmm... she certainly would 'in the field' (i.e. in a wilderness/dungeon area); she probably wouldn't anywhere she thought was safe. So the question becomes how common are attacks on Lyrandar airships on this run?
Hmm... she certainly would 'in the field' (i.e. in a wilderness/dungeon area); she probably wouldn't anywhere she thought was safe. So the question becomes how common are attacks on Lyrandar airships on this run?
The Sharn office of the Khorvarian Bureau of Investigations has refused my Freedom of Information request on the criminal statistics on the Sharn to Stormreach run. I have filed an appeal and will advise you when I hear something.
p.s. I'll have you know I've made the Kessel run in less than 6 parsecs.
The Sharn office of the Khorvarian Bureau of Investigations has refused my Freedom of Information request on the criminal statistics on the Sharn to Stormreach run. I have filed an appeal and will advise you when I hear something.
Well, Sanne would know this sort of thing... however, based on the ship and crew apparently being armed, I'm going to go on the side of caution and say Sanne slept in her armor and bracers.
Yoggrith's eyes slowly open to the sounds of the shouting. As all ammner of individual begin rustling and running about, preparing themselves for a fight above-deck, the halfork takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly. He swings himself off of his hammock then looks down at the equipment he brought on board. His full set of platemail is still wrapped up in cloth for easy conveyance and he does a quick calculation as to how long it would take him to dress.
The thought of him going above-deck and then getting knocked over the side into the water below while wearing what would amount to an anvil instantly nixxes that idea. His amulet and ring are still on of course, and he then reaches down and grabs his boots and belt, which he quickly puts on. He then grabs his shield, checks that his two wands are in their holsters on the back of it, then casts Bear's Endurance and Shield of Faith on himself, and Spikes upon his quartstaff.
"I am ready." he says, then begins making his way upstairs. As he reaches the top of the stairs, he also casts a quick spell of Divine Favor on himself as well.
**********
OOC: With the four spells active, he gains an additional +16 to hit points; +2 to AC (Shield of Faith gives a +3 Deflection bonus to an 8th level character, but I already have +1 Deflection from the Ring Of Protection); +5 to hit (+2 for Spikes and +3 for Divine Favor) and +11 to damage (+8 for Spikes and +3 for Divine Favor).
However he loses -10 to AC for not wearing his full plate armor.
The thought of him going above-deck and then getting knocked over the side into the water below while wearing what would amount to an anvil instantly nixxes that idea.
OOC: I think cruising altitudes for airships are generally high enough that it doesn't matter what you're wearing when you hit the water.
With the howl of potential battle up above, Morika comes awake all at once. Rolling out of bed, she slings her backpack over her shoulder, drawing her scimitar from it as she dashes from the room. As she moves, her muscles thicken and bulge, and her head erupts in heavy ram's horns. With a feral growl, she goes for the deck.
OOC: Morika will wear her amulet of health while sleeping always. Before she heads up, she's going to grab her Heward's Handy Haversack and bust her scimitar out of it as she goes (which she can do while she's moving). Other than that, she's not taking the time to armor up. She'll shift as a free action. And her initiative is 5.
26 – Aeranduil (64/64) – Grab Bow, buckler, quiver, move to E12 from F4 (40’ move)
21 – Jaxel (75/75) – Grab blade and shield, don gauntlets, move to B8.
17 – Ipshivi (46/46) – Invoke Walk Unseen, Grab Haversack. move to E10
14 – Sanne (65/65) – Grab Buckler, Rapier, move to D17.
9 – Yoggrith (90/90) – Grab staff, boots, belt, cast Bear’s Endurance
5 – Morika (66/66) – Grab Haversack, then shift. Move to C10
5 – Voadam (43/43) – Grab sash, spell component pouch, cast Mage Armor
The seasoned adventurers are roused from their bunks by shouting and commotion from above decks.
"ALL HANDS ON DECK!"
The call can still be heard echoing from above. Various shouts are heard, it is obvious that something has attacked the ship. The voices are somewhat muffled.
Various pieces of equipment are quickly assembled, spells are being cast, and bodies are heading towards the stairs.
Ipshivi
You hear the rustling of strong winds -- did another storm appear?
After securing her buckler and infusion component pouch, Sanne runs to the deck with rapier in hand. Depending on what she sees as she moves through the ship, she may shout approriate orders at some of the crewmen.
30 – Elemental #1 – Whirlwind form, 1 crew member inside
28 – Elemental #2 – Attacked Crewman #2, one critical hit, one regular hit crewman down.
26 – Aeranduil (64/64) – Single move to top of stairs
23 – Dalwir – Attacks Elemental #3 with flaming rapier & dagger – HIT 9 damage before DR
21 – Elemental #3 (9 damage – lightly wounded) – Attacks Lieutenant, 1 HIT
21 – Jaxel (75/75) – Double move to the top of stairs (C16)
17 – Ipshivi (46/46) – Reached top of stairs, standard action available.
15 – Lieutenant -- Attack Elemental #3 with rapier - MISS
14 – Sanne (65/65) – Reached top of stairs with 20' of 2nd move action left
9 – Yoggrith (90/90) – Cast Divine Favor, Move to C11 (30' move)
5 – Morika (66/66) – Retrieve Scimitar, Move to top of stairs
5 – Voadam (43/43) – Double move to top of stairs
4 – Crew (8) -- #1 inside elemental #1, #2 dying, #3-8 reload crossbows and fire, 1 hit on Elemental #2 – 2 damage before DR, two hits on Elemental #3 – 8 damage before DR
Aerandiul reaches the top of the stairs with 15’ left on his move action.
Jaxel double moves and reaches the top of the stairs.
Ipshivi reaches the top of the stairs with no move left (standard action available).
Yoggrith casts Divine Favor, moves 30’ to C11.
Morika reaches top of stairs with no move left after drawing her scimitar from her Haversack.
Sanne reaches the top of the stairs with 20’ of her second move action left.
Voadam double moves and reaches top of the stairs with no move left.
Notes:
Jaxel/Morika share the same square at the moment, as do Ipshivi and Sanne
The only way to the stern is through the middle room.
Yoggrith is still downstairs, will be topside next round after he casts Spikes on his staff.
Elemental #1 (F26) is in Whirlwind form 5' wide at base and 50' tall
This is about to get messy.
Actions for round 2 please (for those of you with a partial action left) or round 3 (for those who do not), now that you've been thrown into the fray and see what you're dealing with.
Voadam
You know for certain that these are air elementals. (due to his ranks in Knowledge (the planes) )
Taking a glance to be sure the ship's bound elemental is unharmed before procceeding,
Sanne moves a bit further out beyond the stairway so others can come up more easily, then quickly puts together an infusion to empower her blade to better fight the elementals on the deck.
OOC
Sanne will move to G19 to finish out her previous action, then spend an action point to invoke the Weapon Augementation, Personal infusion as a full-round action rather than spending the normal one minute to do so, giving her rapier the Elemental Bane property (+2 to hit/dmg vs elementals, +2d6 dmg vs elementals) for the next 20 minutes.
Before she begins, though, she'll spare a glance for the ship's bound elemental, quickly checking to make sure it's unharmed.
Sanne's rapier (unaugmented, it's a +1 shock rapier) vs. elementals after augmentation -
+13/+8 to hit, 3d6+7+d6 electricity dmg (+1 str, +3 int, bane, shock), 18/x2 crit
Morika sums up the situation in a glance, and dipping into her belt pouch, clutches the wing bone of a bat. Uttering a few words in ancient Druidic, she gives herself wings to fly. Insubstantial bat wings flutter at her back, and she charges forward to slash at the substance of the rogue elemental.
OOC: Standard action from round 2, cast master air. Round 3, charge and attack with scimitar.
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