Dark tides

Tankard huffs disapprovingly of an elven ship. They are known to be flimsy in combat. However, she does appear in good shape and loaded with guns.... but we don't have enough crew.... but a bigger hold would carry more ale....

Tankard's deep musings are interrupted by a more urgent thought.... this ship only appears to have been here for 1 day or less. That means the crew got turned into zombies very recently!

"Captain Hawkes.... unless the dead have learned to sail, the crew was recently transformed."

to anyone that checks through the ship, you may make an Int. check or Investigation check

also, I forgot a detail when I described the ship... please see that description again; I have updated it

INT
Roll(1d20)+0:
10,+0
Total:10


this time I got an email, weird....

I reread the description, but I honestly didn't notice what was different

just the comment about what is in place of the helmsman's wheel Chris, just needed to change the wording.

I will wait for any other rolls before the next update

“Pastor, I’ve seen a pair of drunken hookers and a chimpanzee make it to shore in a dingy, I’m pretty sure a crew of zombies can muster the talent to get themselves marooned. Now where’s that gin?”
Search:
Result of the throw of dice "1d20" :

7

navyik wrote:“Pastor, I’ve seen a pair of drunken hookers and a chimpanzee make it to shore in a dingy, I’m pretty sure a crew of zombies can muster the talent to get themselves marooned. Now where’s that gin?”
Search:
Result of the throw of dice "1d20" :

7

Tankard laughs loudly, appreciating Hawkes' humor in the face of such a dire situation.

Sjon gets down on his hands and knees next to the creature.  "What a thoughtful guy you are.  I'd love to try it out."  He gets a taste of the brine before sitting back on his haunches.

"Not too bad, but I am more of a berries guy myself.  Here, see what you think of these", he says, as he pulls a few Goodberries out of his pocket.  He eats one himself before reaching an outstretched palm to his new friend.

"What's your name pal?  Mine is Sjon, the tall."

visions of my dwarf riding an Enlarged warthog into battle swim in Chris' head

Bowling for Buzzards!

the warthog eats the berry you provide and answers as he chews... "I'm Tonk" and he chews some more.

Does Crispy have any actions he wants to take?

"I'm glad we're buddies, Tonk. Listen, my other friends and I won't be here long, but we are curious about these dead guys on that beach. Did you see if those guys are the same guys who came from that ship there? Are there any other guys on this island?"

Sjon pops another berry in his mouth.

"those are the smelly monsters that came here. One of them went into the jungle to the bad place... I don't go there; it smells bad and it scares away my brothers and sisters."

"Well, nobody likes bad smells anyways.  Are there any other guys in the bad place, or is there another reason why it is bad?  Except for the smells of course.  Here, try out these roots."

Sjon uses a touch of druidcraft to grow a clump of tasty roots from a nearby log for Tonk to chew on.

he gratefully accepts the food you give him. "there are always bad smells coming from that place... and monsters. I stay away from it"

Sjon sees how Tonk enjoyed the roots and makes another healthy clump grow for him.  "Well, it was really great meeting you Tonk, but before we go, I have one last question.  Are there any good guys on this island at all, or anything else interesting we should go see while we are here?"

Tonk seems a bit confused by your questions... "you're the only one that has fed me... I haven't seen too many like you that don't smell terrible."

Tankard doesn't understand all the grunting and snorting, but he hopes Sjon got directions to the "bad smelly place".

Sjon bows his head to his new friend, drops the rest of his handful of berries, and waves goodbye.  "Until next time, pal.  Would you mind pointing the way where the boat guy headed towards the smelly place?  Hopefully we meet again later!"

he turns his head towards the south of your position (away from the ship and into the jungle). You think you might see some evidence of this person's path but the storm almost obliterated any further trace.

anyone need healing before we continue?

Sjon relays all of Tonks info to the group. Did we do a thorough search of the ship to be sure there were no clues there as to what is happening? I think so, but am not positive.

Sjon is good on HP.

I don't believe that a "thorough" search has been done. If you want to do that, just say so and I will describe things that specifically.

Oy. Sorry guys. Email notifications fell off and I got busy with work & stuff. Anyways, Crispy lingered over the smoldering remains of the zombie pire while the rest did their exploring. Anything of note survive the flames?

Perception check?
Roll(1d20)+3:
6,+3
Total:9

Probably not. He eyes Sjon's new buddy curiously, thinking a pig roast might not be bad way to christen the new digs...

A thorough search is probably a good idea

remember we can Aid the searcher to give advantage, I can cast Guidance for +d4

ok, just post any aid checks or spells that you are using to aid the search and then make the Investigation or Int. checks. There can be more than one person doing this.

I will post everything after those that are going to look things over have posted.

Ajon did his bit with Das Pig, so I'll defer to someone else for searching the ship.

“Bloody Elves, there’s no gin!”

“Boat guy and a Smelly place, eh?”

Hawkes casts detect magic and looks around the ship and dead crew.

Mike is going to chime in later today; I'm going to wait for that and then I will have a long post about all of this.

Sorry for the pace lately. I think we're all rather busy right now. Thank you for your patience!

HP 59/71

Crispy turns to Tankard "Feeling a little knocked around, father. Could use a pint to pick me up."


Any results from Crispy poking around in the ashes of the zombie pire? If not, no other actions.

Ok, the crew pokes around the ship and the bodies (except for Sjon who is having a marvelous conversation with a warthog).

The bodies look mutated... you can tell they are elves and that they are definitely undead. Their clothes look like uniforms and they look as though they used to be quite sharp. These don't look, as far as you can tell, like 'common' sailors from your experience.

As you search the ship, you find a small box in the Captain's quarters that contains an official document written in elvish:

"Captain Korliss, I hereby charge you to find the ruined temple of Talona on Cyphax Island. I know this is dangerous mission, so I have assigned my best captain and ship to this dangerous mission. We must stop Volkanner before his completes his deadly ritual. I know that my faith in you is not misplaced. For the honor of Cephalian and our people, you must not fail."

Signed (and sealed)

King Oloron II

The quarters have all the normal equipment that you would find in a captain's quarters... there is no sign of Captain Korliss. There are several maps (again in elvish) and there is a large supply of elven wine on board.

As stated above, there is a pedestal that appears to be made of adamantine that is located where the helmsman's wheel would be.  You see a half moon symbol on the top of the pedestal that looks like it can be moved.  There are 5 different 'positions' on the pedestal where the symbol can be moved.  The pedestal radiates Transmutation and Conjuration magical energy.

(in elvish) the positions for the symbol are "sails, guns, anchor, rudder"

(for the sake of brevity) - if you fiddle with the controls, you notice that the symbol, when moved properly into the various 'slots' makes the rudder move back and forth, with pinpoint control; the sails will furl and unfurl, the anchor will raise and lower and the guns will move into position or back to the reload position (with the gun ports opening and closing). The ship appears be be mostly controlled in this way (though it seems that you can also do all of these functions manually, except for the rudder).  The Scimitar is no where near as badly damaged as your own ship. With the personnel that you have available (including Sam) you could have this ship ready to sail in a few hours (4-5). Your own ship will take at least a day if not two to repair.

Sjon: after your conversation with Tonk, you think you see what used to be a path moving into the jungle in the general direction that Tonk indicated. It's not that easy to see due to last night's storm; but it is at least apparent enough to try and follow.

"I say we rid the world of this Volkanner and claim the Scimitar as our reward!"



Tankard casts Cure Wounds on Crispy

Result of the throw of dice "1d8 +4" :

7 + 4 = 11

Chris wrote:Taulie Tankard

AC 21
110\110

WIS +8, CON+7, CHA +6
spell save DC 16 cleric, 14 sorc
channel divinity 1\2
PP 18

spell slots available:
3/4
2/3
3/3
2/3
2/2
1/1

Awesome narrative Josh!

Sjon joins the group after his pig-chat to point out the trail he mightve found.

Crispy thanks the tipsy priest for the healing spell and ducks his head in to inspect the galley. Anything of note?

Crispy sees that, despite the battering that this ship took, the galley is still well stocked with food (more Elvish in fare than what others are used to) and a large supply of wine. You still have not seen a living soul on board the ship.

If anyone has History (or something associated) you may make a skill check at this point.

More narrative to follow and then we'll move to the next scene

History
Result of the throw of dice "1d20 +4" :

18 + 4 = 22

Hawkes remembers a night, years earlier when he was in a sailor's tavern... there was a group of humans that had just escaped from Caloreska. Hawkes seems to also remember that they were a group of thieves that had tried to loot an ancient tomb... Hawkes thinks that they said it was the tomb of someone named Volkaner. He cannot be sure of this.

so.... what does the group want to do next?

“Damned Elves came unprepared. Everyone knows that wine will not protect you from Volkaner! You need Gin!” Hawkes seems briefly like he’s been taken by a fever dream.

any other actions that the crew wants to take or anything before we move on??

Crispy emerges from the galley with a discerning look on his face. “Umm, Guys? I think that mace in the Grace’s armory might come in handy. I’m gonna head back and grab it. It’s like my old sensei at the monastery used to tell me: When the Ki is present in the universe, the horses haul manure. When the Ki is absent from the universe, war horses are bred outside the city.”

With that nugget of wisdom dropped on the party, Crispy hightails it back to the Grace. He’ll also take a short rest there in order to attune the Mace of Disruption.

ok, Crispy is able to do that with no issues. Sam also asks what is taking so long? (you don't need to respond, just showing that he's still around)

Crispy relays to Sam what the crew has found and their intention of following the path. He mentions Sam may want to take a look at the Elvish ship and see about repairs.

Sjon tells everyone about a spell he found in the mad rablings of his lost druids journal. A Feast for Heroes, as it were, and wonders if the crew thinks it wise to try it out.

Heroes' Feast

You bring forth a great feast, including magnificent food and drink. The feast takes 1 hour to consume and disappears at the end of that time, and the beneficial Effects don't set in until this hour is over. Up to twelve other creatures can partake of the feast.

A creature that partakes of the feast gains several benefits. The creature is cured of all Diseases and poison, becomes immune to poison and being Frightened, and makes all Wisdom Saving Throws with advantage. Its hit point maximum also increases by 2d10, and it gains the same number of Hit Points. These benefits last for 24 hours.

Crispy returns to the elvish ship with the Mace of Disruption.

“A feast Sjon? Great idea. Was just thinking on the walk back over:
Ki is great; Heaven is great; Earth is great; The people area also great.
These are the four great powers of the universe, And the people is one of them.

Let’s eat!”

damn Joe, why don't you just completely destroy my encounter with that spell??!! lol

Great use of that spell man; well done!

I will update later today and get us moving.

Well, there are only 4 of us.  Not to mention it uses my only 6th level spell.  Yes, Sjon produces the feast for the crew to sup upon.  

Heroes Feast HP roll:
Result of the throw of dice "2d10" : 5 + 5 = 10

Everyone be sure to add 10 to both their HP Max as well as HP for the next 24 hours. And please note the other benefits to your statblocks when posting them.  becomes immune to poison and being Frightened, and makes all Wisdom Saving Throws with advantage.

I thought about that spell for Tankard too, good call. If it had been "binge drinking of heroes" he probably would have gone for it.

+10 max HP
immune: poison, fear
ADV all WIS saves


but "binge drinking of heroes" would give vulnerability to poison and DIS on WIS saves, so not nearly as useful in the end

Hawkes pursues the feast with tentative approval. He appears to be looking for a key ingredient. “Is there gin?”

"The spell in the book says the flavors of this feast are dependant upon the eaters preferences. You tell me if there is gin or not, cap."

Tankard views the magical feast as the "food" portion only and he happily supplies any missing "drink" (if he has it or can make it) assuming that "drink" contains alcohol, of course

“Make sure you have a little gin. Met some sailors once ran afoul of this ‘Volkaner.’ All they drank was gin. They swore they heard gin protected them from him!”

"Aye, boss"

Tankard sets about to see what he can do, whilst quietly grumbling to himself, though not so quietly that he might not be overheard....

Gin?  harumph, flavored Vodka... that's all that is.  Grain alcohol mixed with berries.  Hardly counts as a good drink in my book. But captain wants Gin?  Captain gets Gin.....

Tankard will use the Goodberries provided by Sjon as the botanicals