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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Cypherblade" data-source="post: 9758638" data-attributes="member: 7048389">Steam Power !! Stanfield will not be overly happy being bypassed by the players and receiving orders from the king to handle the situation with the Dockers.....[spoiler]With a thick plume of black smoke, the Coaltongue departs. A dinner is planned on deck. One striking detail: there is also a glass dome greenhouse on the deck.The tour begins.<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">The ship is mostly wooden, but reinforced with 5-inch armor plating.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">It is a warship.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">It is steam-powered—firegems are fed into boilers in the hold.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">“Eighteen knots, sir—that’s very fast.”</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">On the foredeck stands an unprecedented cannon. It fires magical shells.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">On the gundeck there are 23 cannons.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Besides the captain’s and ship mage’s quarters, there are guest cabins.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">The glass dome is a condenser, storing magical energy in coils, which then power the great cannon.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Mages can draw upon the condenser’s energy in some manner.</li> </ul>During the tour, we ask Elian Holsbrook to prepare the mage’s cabin for the Duchess (the mage is not on board). The crew all carry sailors’ whistles, but Felix does not immediately recognize them as the one he saw in his vision. On the gundeck, small runes hang at the powder room door, meant to ward against fire or explosions.We sail toward the islands off the coast, the escort ships staying nearby. At one point, Pemberton approaches Ayleen, draws a knife, and cuts a thread dangling from her sleeve. Ayleen thanks him politely and accepts the thread.The king complains to Harkover Lee of stomach pain and indigestion, saying the Fey Court “sits heavy on his stomach.” Odd. During a magical scan, Ayleen notices a halfling waiter carrying something magical. It turns out to be a +1 dagger. The head waiter does not recognize him at all. The halfling tries to slip away, but Ayleen spots him heading below. Just then, Chief Delft arrives to say we should fetch the duchess, but we ignore him and give chase. The halfling runs ahead, dashing for the Duchess’s cabin. Luckily, Staf is on guard there and immediately grapples the little intruder. The cabin door swings open and the elven maid bolts out, stepping away with Fey magic. The Duchess is gone! Ayleen rushes inside and spots her through the open porthole—standing behind a figure on the back of a massive fish, diving beneath the waves, wrapped in an air bubble!At that moment, a tremor shakes the ship. The halfling tries to snatch the dagger back from Staf but fails. Felix pursues the maid, who seems to be running toward the boiler room. Ayleen races after her, finding two stokers lying on the floor, unconscious. The maid is not visible, but Ayleen hears her speaking to someone feverishly shoveling coal: “I’ll throw it in!”Staf knocks the halfling unconscious. Felix catches up with Ayleen and sees the maid with two accomplices loading the boiler. He casts Suggestion on her, but it fails. Kane arrives and casts Hold Person—she freezes for only a couple of seconds. Felix hurls a Chromatic Orb, which ricochets three times and sears one of the henchmen. Ayleen dashes into the engine room, searching for a way to vent the boiler pressure. Meanwhile, the maid hurls herself at the boiler door, sealing it partly with a wand of rust.Staf has a flash of inspiration—he uses the halfling’s body to smash down the second henchman. Strangely enough, it works. Felix’s wild magic surge summons a Flumph, which, after a quick consultation, slimes the maid in stinking muck. She lashes out at Felix with Scorching Ray, but misses due to the Flumph’s nauseating stench. Ayleen opens the steam release valve and wedges it open. Staf grapples the maid and drags her toward the coal bunker.Kane rushes to find Harkover Lee, meeting Massarde, the ship’s engineer, on the way. Kane warns him the boiler is about to blow. Massarde sprints down with two mechanics. Ayleen discovers the system can divert energy into the condenser, instantly relieving much of the pressure. Massarde helps her channel the excess power into the coils. With a thunderous blast, the railgun discharges. Cheers and shouts of amazement erupt on deck above.Harkover Lee arrives, reassuring us that if we hold the situation for another ten minutes, the elemental will fade on its own. The elemental, lurking in a corner of the boiler, does not appear aggressive. Lee suspects it is an Archfey who spirited away the Duchess. The two surviving captives are secured. The halfling, however, has died. The maid carried a wand capable of rusting metal.Afterward, we attend the king’s speech. He speaks of peace with Danor, announcing his intent to marry a Danoran.Next comes the interrogation of the maid. She refuses to say anything—not about herself, not about the halfling. Kane resorts to Speak with Dead on the infiltrator’s corpse. His name was Ilton, and his allies were, as we suspected, the Duchess and her handmaiden. Their plan was to detonate the boiler. He does not know where the Duchess has fled.Then Stover approaches us: the king wishes to see us. We are led to a salon, where he thanks us warmly. He knows each of us by name—and even mentions Kane’s mother, to the inspector’s surprise. The king clearly has keen, perhaps magical, insight. He invites us to dine, wanting to hear the full account directly from us. We recount everything in detail. He promises us an additional reward. We also hand over the letter meant for the Governor; the king vows to take it up with Stansfield at once.By midnight, it is finally time to rest.[/spoiler]</blockquote>

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