ryryguy
First Post
Approaching the Isle
[sblock=ooc]Ok, I have a long descriptive bit that I'm going to break up into several posts, so you aren't confronted with a massive wall of text.
I'm trying to moving things forward a bit here, but you can post reactions, questions to NPCs, any skill checks you want to make along the way.
My narrative assumes that the party is sort of passive through this section, and I don't think it's too likely that there's a lot you'd want to do. But if there is something, you can definitely do it. I.e. if you want to jump in the water and swim rather than waiting for the ship to dock, that's fine. I will retcon these posts in that case.[/sblock]
The voyage to the Isle takes just over two hours, most of that time spent sailing north up the length of Daunton. Crossing the channel from Daunton to the Isle takes only about a half hour.
The Bluebell Lady passes several other ships en route. One, encountered just miles away from the shore of the Isle, is an impressive Imperial galleon bound away from Daunton, probably for Nova Imperium on the island of Mykonos. Sunlight gleams off bright brass shields hung on the railings all the way around the huge ship. Soon after, the Bluebell Lady turns east to skirt the southern edge of the Isle. The Captain sends a sailor down to fetch anyone below decks who wants to watch as the ship comes in.
The coast is still fairly far away, but the keen-eyed can make out what looks like a scrub forest covered with a light dusting of snow. The elevation of the shoreline rises quickly until the surface is out of view and all that can be seen are steep cliffs. As the ship swings around to follow the curving coastline around to the north, the cliffs tower ever higher.
Then, the cliffs suddenly give way to open water - a quarter-mile-wide inlet, faced by cliffs of similar height on the opposite side. What appears to be a low-lying cloud covering the summit of each cliff. Above the southern one, the cloud has a faint but distinct grayish hue. The more distant northern cloud has a golden tinge.
[sblock=Nature DC 15 (passive)]Based on the local conditions - wind, temperature, and geography - you think the the clouds are not a natural weather phenomenon.[/sblock]
[sblock=Perception DC 25 (active)]Looking up, you think you see a streak of light pass between the clouds. As you continue to watch, you see a few more. They are very thin and come and go quickly, like shooting stars. They are grey or gold and pass back and forth in both directions.[/sblock]
A toothless old sailor chuckles. "Them's th' henges up there. Th' gates. I seen the gold one once, not long after it first opened up to th' Valley o' Bone..." He points towards the northern cloud.
[sblock=ooc]Ok, I have a long descriptive bit that I'm going to break up into several posts, so you aren't confronted with a massive wall of text.
I'm trying to moving things forward a bit here, but you can post reactions, questions to NPCs, any skill checks you want to make along the way.
My narrative assumes that the party is sort of passive through this section, and I don't think it's too likely that there's a lot you'd want to do. But if there is something, you can definitely do it. I.e. if you want to jump in the water and swim rather than waiting for the ship to dock, that's fine. I will retcon these posts in that case.[/sblock]
The voyage to the Isle takes just over two hours, most of that time spent sailing north up the length of Daunton. Crossing the channel from Daunton to the Isle takes only about a half hour.
The Bluebell Lady passes several other ships en route. One, encountered just miles away from the shore of the Isle, is an impressive Imperial galleon bound away from Daunton, probably for Nova Imperium on the island of Mykonos. Sunlight gleams off bright brass shields hung on the railings all the way around the huge ship. Soon after, the Bluebell Lady turns east to skirt the southern edge of the Isle. The Captain sends a sailor down to fetch anyone below decks who wants to watch as the ship comes in.
The coast is still fairly far away, but the keen-eyed can make out what looks like a scrub forest covered with a light dusting of snow. The elevation of the shoreline rises quickly until the surface is out of view and all that can be seen are steep cliffs. As the ship swings around to follow the curving coastline around to the north, the cliffs tower ever higher.
Then, the cliffs suddenly give way to open water - a quarter-mile-wide inlet, faced by cliffs of similar height on the opposite side. What appears to be a low-lying cloud covering the summit of each cliff. Above the southern one, the cloud has a faint but distinct grayish hue. The more distant northern cloud has a golden tinge.
[sblock=Nature DC 15 (passive)]Based on the local conditions - wind, temperature, and geography - you think the the clouds are not a natural weather phenomenon.[/sblock]
[sblock=Perception DC 25 (active)]Looking up, you think you see a streak of light pass between the clouds. As you continue to watch, you see a few more. They are very thin and come and go quickly, like shooting stars. They are grey or gold and pass back and forth in both directions.[/sblock]
A toothless old sailor chuckles. "Them's th' henges up there. Th' gates. I seen the gold one once, not long after it first opened up to th' Valley o' Bone..." He points towards the northern cloud.