Legacy of Death Part I: Most Infamous Danger

[TerraDave]

In spite of Lucian almost cutting his own thumb off with that dager, between him and Forge and recent events, the sailor "breaks" pretty easily (maybe that is also a sign).

"Alright, maybe I had a few and don't quite remember everything that happened. I just now the mates weren't were they said they was going to be. Then I had a few more, and don't know much until I finally found me way back in the mornin".

Forge, the captain has a pretty nice set up, but other then the locked compartment that you may vaguely remember Ghen mentioning, there is not much of interest. You also vaguely remember mention of an office. Though of course, if you found various nautical charts, cargo lists, legal writs and deeds, you may not really know what to do with them.

 

[ecayford]

Forge will examine the office paperwork, log etc trying to find out what the crew had been up to. After that he'll examine the cargo carefully.

 

[Flaming Bob]

Turning to Ghen, Lucien mutters "Where's this locked compartment you mentioned?" while drawing a set of picks from an unseen pouch.

 

[Buckthorn]

With Forge gone and Lucian rummaging for his thieves tools, Buckthorn will continue to talk to the sailor. "You weren't much of a help in the fight there. My friend Forge has a mind to carve off a piece of you to see if you are one of those shifter. Me, I'd prefer not to. Is there some other information you can give us that might prove your usefulness? Can you help us sail the ship? And give an oath to help us, fight and stand at our side should there be further troubles on these troublesome seas with ice giant princelings, trolls, changlings, ghosts, wraiths and who knows what else?"

(Buckthorn will try another Insights check, in part just to practice the die roll)

 

[TerraDave]

Buckthorn: The sailor, overwhelmed by it all, just starts to sob. (at some point he swears his loyalty, you only believe he was trying to cover the falling flat drunk part of the story, and may have been embarrassed by his cowardice.)

Lucian: Your good luck continues (roll 1, 2, then on the last try 19) and after what seems like a good 20 minutes manage to open the compartment. In it you find a decent bottle of Faenian firewater, some relatively dry pipe weed (an ok West Auldshyre), two pipes, one pewter mug, a big bag of coins: 108 cp, 312 sp, and 56 gp, and some kind of fancy document. With much study you guess that this some kind of legal document, confirming that the owner of the ship is one Adolphus Brandt of Dussleburg, and that its rightful captain is in fact Tellard.

Forge: you vaguely remember the crew sailing the ship for the last two weeks. Nothing you find seems to indicate otherwise. The cargo seems to be some pipeweed and some textiles. The hold, as you certainly know from fighting in it, is far from full.

You also find a map: study of the map confirms that you are still probably ~200 leagues from Borivostok, ~300 leagues from Northall. There are various other towns that one could sail to, mostly on the south shore of the Breakice.

Speaking of which…time passes, its now morning, and you are still sitting out on the sea, the ship rocking back and forth. The wind seems to be picking up.

Try to give me some idea of what you want to do and how. Specific actions—and skills--that your character might want to take while, say, the ship is sailing, would be nice.

 

[ecayford]

Forge the Pirate!

Forge, having spent the last few weeks assisting the crew, will do whatever he can to help. (Athletics and Perception are both strong)

We need to decide whether we should return the vessel to the authorities and hopefully claim a prize for its return or whether we continue on and hope that we don't have any issues with the authorities when we land at our destination with a ship that doesn't belong to us. We should keep the bodies of the changelings as evidence. I suspect the families etc of the crew would want to know what has befallen the crew at our last port.

 

[Flaming Bob]

"Yes, keeping the bodies is a good idea. Though leaving them on deck during the voyage is not. Buckthorn, how confident are you that you and this clueless berk here can get us to our scheduled destination? If you're not sure, then I say we find kip in a nearer port."

The planar continues to plunder the hold, looking for anything that might have been missed.

 

[Buckthorn]

Buckthorn, to Forge, Ghen, and Lucian: "I feel we can trust this man, [what is his name?], he seems like a solid fellow and not part of the strange going on that happened in Dusselburg. Besides, frankly, I think we need him."

I say we say on to Barivosktok. It's just as long or longer back to Northhall. I say we press on. I think we can make it... (as long as our luck turns), he mutters to himself under his breath.

Baring any objection from the party, Buckthorn will put the sailor to work instructing him to man the ship. Buckthorn will also pitch in to help with the ship, relying on his sailing background.

"And we could likely use some help as well." Buckthorn will ask Forge, Ghen, and Lucian to help crew the ship, once they are done searching through the hold.

He will also ask Lucian if he might consult the map, showing the way to Barivostok. "That could come in handy."

[Buckthorn would rely on his sailing background. He'd make nature checks as apporiate to check for weather, currents and the like.]

 

[kaltfeuer]

Icebergs Ahead

Hey Folks -

Buckthorn can't sail on his own, and we don't trust the grunt to handle things while Buckthorn is resting. We suggest setting up a watch, and never leaving the maggot alone.

We also wonder what happened to Old Petey. He came on with the imposters, and he could very well go tell their friends what has happened. We're positive we haven't seen the last of him. Next time we face him, we need a more open location. He has a terrible advantage being able to move through the walls. Any suggestions?

We can prevent the bodies from decaying and reeking worse than they do now. We will need to spend time preparing and performing a ritual on each of them. Then, we can throw them in the hold with the other meager cargo. We don't see the particular need to return the bodies or report back now. YOU SHOULD BE AGREEING WITH US! {shakes head a little} We boarded the ship with the understanding that we would end up in Borivostok. There is no reason why we can't go there first, and return the bodies as proof later. {prepares Gentle Repose}

If you think it might be helpful, we can cast another ritual to talk to wildlife. We may be able to get assistance from a seal or walrus or some other passing creature. They can help with navigation, and also to warn what kind of enemies are close enough to cause problems.

 

[kaltfeuer]

Pitching In

Either perception or nature (same score +12) with Speak With Spirits (adds +4 to skill check) to assist in navigation, etc.