It was the third day of Karia Marrhdre, the mid summer festival. Constono Palipe duSuirre (the second son of Prince Gregory and Princess Eloise) had planned a celebration aboard the Durisperia, a shallow draft, twin hulled, redesigned barge that normally lay at anchor in Windswell Bay. The young Constono (Constono is a title, it is given to a noble who serves as a collector of fees or taxes) had invited many of the wealthy and aristocratic families of the city to his celebration, which would also correspond with the nineteenth birthday of his young fiancée Henrietta (Etta) Hezorbo. The guests would be presented with a light buffet of delicacies of the sea, pastries from local bakeries, and the finest wines and aperitifs that are available in the harbor city of Tarredore Aleingerre (which is in the old language of the original people of Geraza, and means, Lover’s Night Skies), and entertainment provided by some of the cities local street musicians, dancers, acrobats and other talented individuals. One hundred guests were invited. In addition to the guests, there would be nine servants of the Constono’s household, seven crew (the ship has a very small crew for its size, as the men and women responsible for the ship have very few duties other than regular maintenance, the sip is a party barge, after all), and eighteen additional “hired” servants, mostly the entertainment but also including two cooks, and three sommeliers to supervise the catering and service of the wine.
The Constono is a young man of thirty four years. He has had, in the past, a notorious reputation for debauchery, but in the last few years has become more settled and responsible. He is handsome, tall, with black hair, that he wears short and “free” as the locals call the curly uncombed look. His fiancée is an attractive red haired girl who is soft spoken, but is rumored to be well read and of a keen intellect.
Most of the guests are close to the same age as the Constono, and in the time between the announcements and the day of the celebration many rumors were circulating that the Constono was going to be throwing one last party to reminisce on his youth before settling down to start a family.
Only one hour after the opening toast and a short blessing ceremony performed by a young Gymnagaophthian priestess, for reasons you and everyone else on board were not told, the Costono ordered the ship to be unmoored from the anchored platform in the bay and the one small square sail set. The winds were out of the northeast, and the large ship drifted slowly out of the bay on a calm sea (when asked about how the ship would return to the bay, the Constono joked that the barge could be rowed, and that the guests would draw straws to see who would “take the oars”, now it is important to know that “take the oars” has a particularly derogatory meaning among the nobility as it is an expression that was used to describe the period of time in the history of the Republic of Basconde when several noble families were stripped of their titles and pressed into indentured servitude as a result of the failed revolution of 1328 – many of these nobles became galley slaves on the ships of the Cartoza family, under King Joaquin Passeo Cartoza II).
Three hours later, with the ship now well beyond sight of the shore, a squall rose out of the east. There was a general panic aboard the barge, and many of the guests went below the deck while demanding that the Constono return the ship to the harbor immediately. Only moments after this the ship began to break up. The Durisperia carried two small boats, normally stowed upside down on the forward deck of the barge, but both of the small crafts had been used to bring guests to the barge, and had been tied, drifting to the stern of the vessel.
As the Dusperia broke up many of the people on board were thrown into the stormy sea, and some of those, those who could swim, managed to make it to the small crafts and escape the sinking of the Dusperia. However, these survivors were at the mercy of the sea.
One of the crafts, driven by the ocean currents and easterly gale force winds, was washed up on an uncharted island to the east of Maleoria Saint Pirocca (the southern most of three islands off of the southern tip of the Republic of Basconde). The Longitude is somewhere between 165 and 168 degrees east, and the Latitude is somewhere between 38 and 41 degrees north.
You are one of the castaways
You are (player’s choices are): 1) Male or Female, 2) Human (Anthandran), Halfling (Basconde, Eshian, or Volognan), Dwarven (Holdandun), Elven (Drasbian), or a Half-0rc (Beauvingian), 3) Ship’s crew, Servant (Household or Hired for the party), or Aristocracy
Additionally you may have up to three levels in a combination of PC and NPC classes, but if you have more than two levels one level must be an NPC class level. Classes that are excluded from consideration are Ranger, Sorcerer, Monk, Cavalier, Inquisitor, and Oracle.
You have no gear. Your clothing is suitable for the environment, for now.
There are three NPC survivors
Henrietta (Etta) Hezorbo, the fiancée of the Constono
Tessrime Niessomat, the gymnagaopthian priestess (she is a second level cleric of Nerimexetas, a sea goddess, aligned toward good, with lawful tendencies)
Mario Burammi, a Halfling (Eshian), a sommelier
The first five to post their choices will be selected to play this game for as long as they are interested. Anyone to post after the first five may be asked to participate by making choices for the NPC’s, occasionally, or perhaps taking the role of monsters or by creating interesting encounters for the castaways.
Should there be a lack of interest, it may be that the story is continued just because I am bored and need to write something to occupy my imagination.
Rules will be derived, mostly, from the Pathfinder Core Rules as found in the PRD, but expect deviations that may be made to facilitate the story as it is presented here in a public forum environment (mostly this means that any combat will be abstracted a bit).
So, anyone interested?
