D&D 5E Spell & Crossbones

[Quickleaf]

[SBLOCK=Sailor to Barrington]
Kells squints a bit when Barrington mentions Captain Read Wallace's reputation, as if he were trying to gauge just which reputation Barrington was referring to. "Aye, Cap'n will meet with you first light where the 'Chelsea be docked. You'll find the crew working by sunrise. That's why you won't see any of those deck rats here tonight. Cap'n's orders. Beer only and a good nights rest when working."

Finishing his whiskey, the rough sailor sucks his teeth. "She's a fine ship, the Winchelsea is. A pure brigantine with full compliment of 8 sails. She's got 10 culverins to a broadside, and 4 more fore and aft. Been in plenty of fights with French and Spanish both, but her main mast ain't been damaged yet." He raps on the table for good luck. "I hear you've sailed with Ben Hornigold, is that true? Cap'n mentioned so when he asked me to keep an eye out for you. He'll have questions for you about Hornigold, I'm sure, as well as questions about that lot led by the Spanish wench." Kells gestures to Katarina and the others.
[/SBLOCK]

[SBLOCK=Queenie]

OOC: Hah! You're savings up the good rolls for when it counts, clearly All Katarina knows about Captain Reed Wallace are the basics: he's an English privateer who often makes berth in Nassau.

[/SBLOCK]

 

[Kobold Stew]

[SBLOCK=Barrington to Kells]
Jim nods at the description of the ship. He makes the translation to the
Royal Navy grades. Sixth Rate. There'd be more than a dozen officers, but he'd be one of them. A well-bottomed enterprise.

"About two hundred in the crew?," he asks. And command of ten guns. Even if they are six-pounders, that will be substantial.

At the mention of Hornigold, Barrington holds Kells's gaze.

"Aye, I've served with Captain Hornigold." in other contexts, Barrington might use his Christian name, but knowledge of such intimacies are not to be traded for naught. "Plenty of fights with the French and Spanish, as you say. He knew how to reward individuals for extra daring, particularly when it came to boarding. I did quite well for a while, before she found his sorcerer."

"I expect I'll see you in the morning. Thank you for the sack."[/SBLOCK]

 

[fireinthedust]

OOC: For the comment to Nia, I was thinking that Varlock was standing next to her ("the crew"), so that her comment to Katarina would be in ear shot. Also he's got, y'know, supernatural abilities including telepathy (I share this ooc, but we can bring it up IC when the party does our thing), so maybe? fwiw, I wonder if it wouldn't also help show his personality a bit. Also, the pickle I'm in is that Varlock is a gentleman, and wouldn't arm wrestle with Latvians unless there was an issue. He's only doing it to support Nia and Katarina, serving as a distraction. Is there a way we could let Varlock have overheard the comment, this once? In service to the broader action?

Varlock readies himself to begin the arm wrestle.

 

[Quickleaf]

[SBLOCK=Sailor to Barrington]Kells shakes his head, "Nay, you're thinking of those merchant marine brigs, me thinks. The 'Chelsea runs on a lean crew of 120 men, not counting officers. She may not be as spry as some of the schooners that ply these waters, but she's a sight more agile than a brig. I'll tell you, those eight sails keep the crew damn busy!" He laughs coarsly as if he can see the crew sweating under his commands in his mind's eye. "Aye, Mr. Barrington. In the morrow, then." Kells turns his whiskey glass upside down and sets a few pieces of eight on the table before lowering his cap and making his way out of the tavern.[/SBLOCK]

Nia Steeleyes watches the sailor in the navy blue cap conclude whatever business he had with Barrington and head out of the tavern, turning up his coat collar against the winds outside.

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The Insult Arm Wrestling Match

Gvido Berzins applies firm pressure against Doctor Varlok's hand and squeezes hard. "I haven't wrestled a man in long sleeves before. They must be to hide your puny biceps? Rrrr..." 

OOC: @fireinthedust Sure, no problem! It helps that you explain where you're coming from. Make either a Strength (Athletics) check or a Dexterity (Acrobatics) check, depending on whether you're starting aggressively or defensively/warily, respectively.

"Well, let us have a go then!" said Hugo, cup in hand and eyes near-shut from a red-cheeked smile. He indicated a table and chair with a flourish like a circus master. "Who's appetite is whet for an easy win, eh?"

The other Latvian mercenaries grin at Hugo as he comes to the table. One of them, a burly man with messy mop of hair nursing a sore arm, chuckles, "Easy, master dwarf! You'll have to wait turn, after Gvido break your friend's hand. Hahaha." He speaks, and laughs, in a heavy Latvian accent.

 

[Kobold Stew]

Barrington stands as Kells moves to leave, and looks back at his table. Assuming it's still empty, he'll return there and await Polly.

 

[Queenie]

OOC: you've mentioned some other sailors around for possible recruitment? Has Katerina noticed any of them - not that's she's noticed ANYTHING tonight lol. I wasn't clear on who they were?. [\ooc]

 

[fireinthedust]

Varlock takes a moment to flex, then wobbles again in his chair before putting his arm back down. Seeming to collect his focus again, he slurs out I better not flex too much before we do this: I lose too many coats when my muscles burst the sleeves! Hah! No, no, no, I wear the coat so I'm not accosted by beautiful women when I just want to crush someone in an arm wrestle. Now are you going to use your mouth or your arm for this, friend?

When the arm wrestle begins, Varlock stops speaking and channels his focus in a way he learned from one of his Jesuit brothers, as a young man: clench your belly, not your arm, and push when you breath out; then hold when you breathe in, and do it all again. Sailors and hard-headed folk never think when they wrestle, too besotted with drink. A skinny thinking-man can out wrestle a dozen soldiers this way, amazing those who have no idea how this can be possible.

Varlock had done this many times in the past, but it had been years since he'd had occassion to practice...

OOC: Acrobatics, rather than brute strength! [roll0] btw: I learned this technique from a friend's wife, and tried it throughout high school and university. I haven't tried in years, but back then I never lost (except when those two ladies in Kendo grabbed my arm and got me, but that was good fun)

 

[Quickleaf]

OOC: Queenie, whatever you do, don't roll! Joking! I know I mentioned some potential crew to Unsung (Teague). And I've been dropping bits of color about the tavern here and there, which hint at sailors, though I didn't explicitly say "Hey! You could hire these dudes!" I guess I was trying to allow for you guys to come up with your own crew-acquisition schemes, but I must have been too sparse with my descriptions. I'll do a quick recap of who's in the tavern below.  Also, would it help if I post some sort of Quest Tracker somewhere? So you guys know what quests you've identified, who/how many crew members you've recruited, and so forth?

 

[Queenie]

OOC: rofl you crack me up. I hope I don't have to roll for anything important too soon! Yes, I definitely think a quest tracker would be useful. Honestly, most games I've played go with you should assume you don't know something unless it was said to you. So if you told gunner something, I haven't noted it because he hasn't told me. Maybe I'm getting into character too much? I was hoping to match some of our crew up with who they would best recruit and get everyone doing something.

 

[Quickleaf]

Making the last of her rounds of the tavern, the bar wench "Polly" shakes her head at the arm wrestling spectacle. Catching Barrington's eye, she holds up five fingers with a pleading look to signal she finishes work in five minutes. She pauses by Old Zef and Hugo Van Haan with a hand on her hip, speaking in a bold Welsh accent, "Well, can I get you rumdiggers anything, o' d' you just come for the horseplay? Some gin from your homeland, perchance? Just two shillings?"

A dozen or more tavern-goers have gathered around the table where the arm wrestling match is being held between Gvido Berzins and Doctor Varlok. Even a group of drunken sailors who were playing a drunken knot tying game have come over, though two of them seem to have tied their thumbs together and thus jostle each other for the best view of the arm wrestling match. Several Dutch dwarves, led by a dwarven woman with a soot-stained face, have elbowed their way to get closer to the table as well. It doesn't take much to see the crowd is starved for entertainment, mostly likely from too many days in port without enough work.

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The Insult Arm Wrestling Match

Gvido makes no disguise about exerting himself, grunting emphatically as his crushing grip squeezes Doctor Varlok's hand. However, the Doctor's strategy keeps him from losing any ground, and furthermore allows him to size up Gvido a bit. It would seem that they are both equally matched for sheer strength, but with the way Gvido is exerting himself, Doctor Varlok could probably outlast him if it came to that.

"Hah! The only seams you're going to burst are when I'm done with you!" Just when it seems like Gvido is going to pursue the same strategy of trying to crush the Doctor's hand, he suddenly makes a dangerous feint, letting Doctor Varlok have a bit of give, then pressing hard to catch him off guard. "My mouth or my arm? Even my eyelash could beat a shrimp like you!"

OOC: 1st round - Tie! (Gvido 13 vs. Varlok 12+1 for great description) Make a Wisdom (Insight) check to catch the trick Gvido is up to. Also, the next round you determine what sort of opposed check you and Gvido will make, based on whatever strategy you devise. Gvido - Charisma (Deception): 1d20+2=13