Deep Water and Shoals - A Swashbuckling Campaign

[Bob Aberton]

All,

Port's watch ends uneventfully; or at least as uneventfully as the night watch during a full gale can be.

The cold, wet sailors of Port Watch head gratefully for their bunks to catch what sleep they can, knowing they'll be awakened in another four hours for their next watch.

(OOC: Nicodemus and Malthas can go below if they wish; if Malthas goes below, the relief pilot, John Stout of Starboard Watch, will take the wheel.

Vemuz and Bimzoole, it is your watch on deck.)

Starboard watch, rudely awakened by Mr. Lang, rub the sleep out of their eyes and head on deck, instantly awakened by the bone-chilling combination of wind, spray, and cold air.

John Stout heads over to the helm.

"I c'n take the helm for ye, if ye wish, Mr. Swifthand," he says. "Tis yer watch below."

(OOC All: My computer might not be working tomorrow - I've been having connection problems. Just to warn you in case there is no DM post forthcoming...)

 

[garyh]

Bimzoole kept watch, and hoped that nothing exciting would occur.

 

[dead_radish]

Malthas nods gratefully to Stout, and rubs his aching arms and legs. "Aye. That storm took a lot out of me, Mr. Stout. I'd appreciate it." He relays instructions to Stout, and stumbles below deck to his cabin, and is asleep in seconds.

 

[Uriel]

Nicodemus goes below, after retrieving the Sunrods from the Crew that have them.Thinking for a moment, he leaves 4 in the hands of the Watch Crew. These he will leave out permanently, in case watchmen need light for whatever reason.
Going below, Nico returns to a lab thrown about in the storm, cursing at his spilled experiment, he begins setting things in order, only to turn in incredulous bewilderment to find Artimus sleeping (and snoring) in his little hammock. The Rogue had slept the Storm through...Nico's laughter could be heard the whole of the Belowdecks...

 

[kenjib]

Vemuz joins the watch. As he sits on a coil of rope he pulls out a long knife with a handle made of bone and whittles casually at a small block of wood. The ugly features of a crude fetish slowly begin to emerge. The lips are parted in a wide grin with large teeth and leering eyes. The tongue lolls out loosely to the side.

ooc: If I'm supposed to be more alert than this during watch let me know and I'll revoke this action. I'm not sure how involved watch is, but it seems like the time to do something like this.

 

[Bob Aberton]

(OOC Vemuz: Don't worry about it; unless you're on lookout duty [which you're not] you can pretty much do anything you want during watch.)

Vemuz,

Taking shelter as best you can from the rain and wind, you while away the time by carving at the block of wood.

"Well, that's a looker an' no mistake," comments a passing sailor. You glance up briefly and see the Espirantish seaman, Lupe Sanchez.

All,

Port's watch continues mostly uneventfully, except for the occasional boarding sea that washes over the deck. Most of the sailors avoid the seas by taking shelter either on the fo'c'sle deck (which is raised above the main deck) or the quarterdeck (which is likewise raised.).

 

[kenjib]

"A looker?" Vemuz chuckles. "You might say that. Have you heard of The Bazzylisk, Mr. Sanchez?" Vemuz' face becomes deadly serious as he stares intently into Lupe's eyes with a fierce intensity. "Claws dripping with the deadliest poison, and a grin so black and cold that just a glance would turn your soul to stone. His breath is so foul that he corrupts the very ground he walks upon. Just to see The Bazzylisk is certain doom. Aye, be glad it's but a carving, Mr. Sanchez."

Intimidate check: 18 + 8 = 26. The goal is to unsettle/unnerve him.

 

[Tonguez]

Malachi moves aft to check the log and lines making calculations on how far off course they might have strayed so far.

The log bumps against the hull as he throws it out again and with tThis done he sits back and throws out a line for a spot of fishing

(ooc Navigation check 8 +9 = 17)

 

[Bob Aberton]

(OOC All: Sorry I didn't post last night...I got home later than I thought I would and then had a great amount of work ahead of me...)

Vemuz,

The Espirantish sailor looks perturbed at your recitation.

"I...think I shall take lookout duty now, hey?" he says, hastily, and walkes hurriedly forward.

Malachi,

(OOC: make a Navigation check...

I don't think you want to do any fishing right now - the storm's still not quite dead yet...otherwise fishing would be a fairly good idea...)

You throw out a fishing line, only to have it thrown back at you by a white-capped swell, almost as if the ocean is spitting your line back out at you.

All,

As you huddle around the wet, windy deck, performing your various tasks and whiling away the time, the gale seems temporarily forgotten.

It doesn't like being forgotten; towards the end of your watch, you can feel CALYPSO'S GRACE dropping stern-first into a trough between swells that looks miles deep.

There is suddenly much consternation on deck; sailors hurriedly rush to the rigging, or if their feet are less sure, to the pin rails, hoping the belaying pins will provide enough of a handhold.

You all look towards the stern, and you can see a giant swell, much taller than all the rest, towering above you, dwarfing the 1500 ton CALYPSO'S GRACE as though the ship were a child's toy.

The cry goes up: "ROGUE WAVE!"

The grayish-green monster almost seems to leer at you, before it collapses upon itself, and upon the CALYPSO'S GRACE, in a rush of foamy seawater that completely buries the deck.

(OOC: I rolled Strength checks for everyone to speed things up; I assume you all grabbed on to some handhold when you saw the wave...I hope you don't mind; if you disagree with what I've posted, just say so...)

Vemuz,

Seeing the veritable mountain of water towering over the ship, you quickly pocket your carving and grab for the rigging.

When the swell buries the deck, it also buries you. For a moment, the world contracts into the roaring swirl of freezing water before your eyes.

After what seems like an eternity (but is really only a few minutes), the water recedes down the scuppers, and you can breathe again.

Everyone on deck picks themselves up and tries to catch their breath. That is when you see a small spark of golden light flare up, a few hundred yards away, tossing in the ocean.

You realize it was probably Lupe Sanchez, the sailor who had taken over bow lookout just after speaking to you. The light must be his sunrod (the ones Nicodemus passed out at the start of the blow).

Then the cry that all sailors dread goes up from Mr. Lang;

"MAN OVERBOARD!"

Bimzoole,

You manage to make it behind the mizzenmast before the wave hits and buries you, too, in seawater.

Spitting out the bitter, salty foam, you peer out from behind the mizzenmast, just in time to hear the cry go up,

"MAN OVERBOARD!"

Malachi,

When you see the enormous wave leering at the CALYPSO'S GRACE, you have just enough time to lash yourself to the taffrail before the water drowns you in an icy, salty embrace.

When the water recedes, an eternity later, or so it seems, you can see a small spark of light, most likely one of the sailor's sunrods, bobbing in the swell a few hundred yards away.

You, too, hear the dreaded hail;

"MAN OVERBOARD!"

 

[Uriel]

OoC:Er, I think I read something wrong. I thought that the storm had ended.... If not, I would have left all 10 Sunrods with the Watch.
Either way, one seems to have been useful.

IC: Nico rushes back above decks at the dreaded
'MAN OVERBOARD!'.

Casting ALter Self as he goes, the Dwarf perpares to do his self appointed (and oft-taken on other ships) job of 'Rescue Wizard'.
OoC:Alter Self giving Webbing between Fingers/Toes and Gills)

As soon as I'm on Decks, I'll look for a rope to tie off and try to help fish out the hapless Man.