Corsairs of Varisia

Game Master dain120475

So, are we waiting to see if Polux and Snaga stay in the swamp with the deep sink hole and explore, before we draw the raft to the small hill further down (600ft away, you said, right?) to repair it? Let's get that straight before we continue with further rp and then possibly having to do retcon. Thanks.

So the scenario so far is: Melthune and Daya have established the next location to move the raft to so repairs can be made on land. Taissa and Hack to work on repairs eventually, Holystone to navigate raft, Melthune to man oar/pole (Hack to man other oar/pole, Tais to keep watch/be lookout). Polux went down into the swamp water/sink hole and discovered some interesting things that warrant more investigation (at some point). Snaga believes they should remain and continue searching the sink hole while the rest of us move down the swamp, hit the next hill and make the necessary repairs. Hack has marked the location of the sink hole using the surrounding landmarks etc...

"I'm a sailor of the open sea is what I am," Jenner retorts to Hack's friendly ribbing, "not of bloody shifting mucky marshes! But give me a second..."

If we need to mark the spot for a later return, Jenner will do the following. If not, then ignore all this:

He rummages in his pack for a bit and comes up with... a bar of soap, a coil of twine, and a magnet. "Right, so, what I'll do..."

He ties the chunk of soap up with several looping strings and knots, to make sure it can't slide out, and then weighs the other end of the fifty-feet of twine with the magnet. Tunk!! over the edge. Soap, of course, floats-- it's not exactly a buoy, but it's the best he can rig out here.

"Reckon it'll take a few days at least for the soap chunk to dissolve," Jenner says cheerfully. "Next time, I'll bring a buoy. Hope I don't need my magnet in the mean-time..."

He does take note of the surroundings as a back-up, too, in case the soap is gone when they return through some stroke of poor fortune.

Profession Sailor to otherwise chart the spot via landmarks: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (2) + 7 = 9

***

When Snaga suggests going down there with Hack, Jenner looks concerned. "That's bold indeed... I can do nothin' to help you if you get in trouble down beneath the water... at least you can use the string to guide you up, eh? But I fear I've not got a way to give you light, beneath the waves.... I do have a little crystal to give one person a bit of breathin' air-- you might need it in an emergency."

Jenner digs out the air crystal from his pack as well, in case they really are going under.

Echoing Taissa, let's sort out if there's a scuba expedition happening. :P

Hey guys - so here's the thing; the rains are pretty heavy, if you recall earlier when you were camped up on the hill you could see an almost flooding of the valley below.

Because of the heavy rains (sometimes strong enough to uproot small plants and some trees) you haven't seen many predators or vermin; also, the current itself is what's been pushing you toward the coast mainly (because the swamp empties into the coast and you're heading that way in any case) - the Sailing and Strength haven't been used to propel the craft forward as much as make sure it doesn't smash into trees or bracken under you.

That said, repairing the raft is a good idea because you very well may end up getting it smashed and broken against some logs if Jenner makes a bad Profession Sailor check.

So with an almost swampy flood that is so strong that it's kind of causing smaller flotsam in the water, it's pretty choppy - almost as if the swamp itself is kind of oozing forward like a really muddy, slow-moving river.

Keep that in mind for whatever plans you decide to make; I'll give Polux some more time to post; then I have to go back to work again and won't have something up until later tonight.

Dain, you said in an earlier posting that Taissa could not make any repairs to the raft until it was on land. So what are you saying now, that repairs can be done on water? I'm trying to understand the purpose of what you've said in the above posting. Holystone has already made numerous Prof Sailor checks and all but one seemed to have succeeded. Taissa and Hack have both rolled successful Craft Carpentry checks. I simply wanted to know if Polux and Snaga would explore the sinkhole now or later so rp wouldn't be confused with retcon.

I simply wanted to know if Polux and Snaga would explore the sinkhole now or later so rp wouldn't be confused with retcon.

Me too, Taissa. However, Snaga is an NPC he won't go exploring himself and I haven't heard from Polux.

Right now you and Hack have completed the repairs in 2 hours. During that time the company has nothing to do - they could stand watch, or they could do other things. So you guys are good on that count.

Also, as you suggested, Jenner's Sailor Checks will easily get you to the goblin lair at roughly 20 minutes after the repairs are done; because he did already make them successfully.

Given that Polux indicated an interest in that specific area I assumed that (perhaps) some of the people who weren't working on the repairs might be interested in heading down there t check things out and I was prepared to do that now before moving forward formally so there would have to be no ret-con.

However, if I don't see something in a few hours, I'm just going to move forward.

We might not hear from Polux as it's quite late (time wise) for him on his side of the world. Will you give Polux an opportunity to respond in the morning his time and then move the game forward? Melthune has a -4 to Swim, so she will only slow down Polux and Snaga if she were to go into the water with them (must be all that armour). Holystone has a +5 to Swim -- so if he's amiable, he may go down with them? I can't speak for Holystone, as it is his decision. I wasn't aware that you wanted others to go down, too, as it seemed Snaga addressed Polux alone on the matter. And I don't expect Snaga to go down on his own, so no worries there. Thanks for clarifying.

The company waits on the ground near the raft as Hack and Taissa work on the repairs.

The rain continues to fall heavily on them and they do what they can to avoid the chill as well as the flowing bracken that threatens to knock into them as the waters push south toward the sea.

As Hack and Taissa finish the last repairs they look at their comrades.

”It’s good – let’s shove off,” Snaga says as he looks it over and nods.

The company gets onto the raft and heads toward the crags in the south. As they advance they can see that the water is sloshing up against some rather high and intimidating crags which the company is forced to work very hard to avoid crashing into.

The rocks stab out of the water like broken fingers and tower up in jagged rows. There is nowhere to leave the raft and there seems to be no entrance for the party to investigate or enter.

Without pause, Snaga leaps from the raft and clings to the slippery rocks like a drowned rat and looks at the rocks – as if studying them. He moves sideways over them in a hand-over-hand motion as if looking for something even as Jenner does what he can to make sure that the raft doesn’t shatter on the cliff.

Eventually he discovers what he’s looking for; a strange carving on the wall that seems to be what looks like an etching in another language. He glances at the others.

”Here – here be place,” he says.

”We swim under water and find tunnel. It not far – we get in tunnel and swim through and reach open cave. Water goes through tunnel and comes out to other side of cliffs where big boats can be kept.”

”The water makes trail in cave – very easy to follow. But good stuff in caves above, yes? The caves above the water trail will probably have real loot…”

He glances at the others with a small smile.

”Travel up, up, up the mountain ahead – that’s where you find the loot…” he says with a nod, then grabs his gear and dives from the cliff into the water and treads water by the etching.

”Come on – follow me!” he says, then plunges into the water and disappears.

Rules for swimming: - Make a Swim check once per round while you are in the water. Success means you may swim at up to half your speed (as a full-round action) or at a quarter of your speed (as a move action). If you fail by 4 or less, you make no progress. If you fail by 5 or more, you go underwater.

DC for Swim Check in Rough Water: 15

The distance you have to swim underwater before you can get to the opening is only fifty feet. You’ll need to make the checks once you dive under.

Once you get under the water you won’t be able to come up for air until you succeed in getting through the tunnel, or until you die.

Finally – what do you do with the raft and the gear on it? There’s nowhere to tie it at this point; just the rocks.

Good luck!

PS: Regarding the diving thing – yes; Jenner or Melthune could try to go with Polux, if he wants to go. However, that’s going to have to be ret-conned at another time, if at all.

Apologies for the absent posting guys, and the retconing mess it may have caused - I was unexpectedly out of the house the whole day yesterday. Polux would take Snaga's words as a dare, and dive immediately back in :D But for the sake of expediency:

”You say maybe snake god be nothing, yes? Well… where is your heart, eh chief?” he says to Polux as the rain splatters down on his face and his gleaming yellow eyes stare up at him.

Polux stares back at the goblin with a smile - "So far we have seen nothing regarding this 'Snake God' that cannot be put down with a blade - really now, they really ain't much to look at after you scrape them off your boot" - he looks back at the water, then at Snaga again - "That doesn't mean I'm stupid - true, I can push it over the edge here and there" - he laughs - "But why shouldn't I wait until we can find a way to have Jenner and Melthune offering us back up in there? Heck, we're not that far from dryland, maybe if the time dries up a tad, it will even be uncovered?"

Putting a hand on his companion shoulder he adds - "I get the feeling you know more about this than you are letting on Snaga, but what you know is your own business - don't worry, whatever is down there won't be going anywhere soon, and we have other matters to attend. We'll deal with this one our way back"

"That's bold indeed... I can do nothin' to help you if you get in trouble down beneath the water... at least you can use the string to guide you up, eh? But I fear I've not got a way to give you light, beneath the waves.... I do have a little crystal to give one person a bit of breathin' air-- you might need it in an emergency."

"Thanks Jenner" - Polux retorts to his companion - "But I don't think we are doing this right now - we agreed on a set course of action, and we should stick to it, right?" - he shrugs - "But if you guys agree, and we got the stomach for it" - he turns to Snaga with a wink - "Maybe we can return to this when we double back?"

"Aye, we can come back to it," Jenner agrees easily. He puts his air crystal away again.

***

"Hang on a tick," Jenner says to Snaga's explanation, hopefully before the little goblin goes over the edge. "How do the 'big boats' get in, eh? There's got to be another entrance if there's big watercraft in there. You might be able to swim like a fish, Snaga, but some of us," he looks to Melthune in her armor, "will have a harder time of it! An' Melthune, if you don't take that off I reckon you'll sink like a stone...

"Ye might have told us earlier we'd be swimmin' in through a wee little hole," he adds on, tugging on his beard with furrowed brows, "before we set out, aye?"

Shaking his head, Jenner dismisses that to focus on the problem at hand. "This raft'll get bashed to nothin' by the waves if we let it drift, and then we'll have no way to get back to town, neither... hm, I've a notion, tho-- does anybody have pitons? You know, those spikes you hammer on into a rock?"

Jenner quickly outlines his plan-- he, or someone else who feels confident in their climbing skills, can scale a short distance (20 feet would do it, I'd think) up the crag walls and drive in a few pitons, and thread rope through the piton holes. The rope can then be used to haul the raft up flat to the crag face, so that it's lifted out of the raging surf. (I'm not sure I'm doing a good job explaining this, but I can do a simple drawing of it if my description isn't clear.)

***

When it comes to gettin' wet, Jenner makes sure his pistol, papers, and a few other delicate items are sealed away in his waterproof bag, which is then stowed in his backpack, before he gets ready to get in the water.

Taking 10 on my swim checks, per my sea-souled trait, which lets me always take 10 on those. Total of 15, should mean I'm fine and can be assumed to be swimming without difficulty.

"I can do that" - Polux nods at Jenner's suggestion - "Anyone got a climbing kit?"

Either way, so as not to hold up the proceedings :D

Climb: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (18) + 5 = 23

Swim for navigating the underwater tunnel: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (9) + 5 = 14

Melthune helps pole the raft as best she can. At mention of exploring the watery grave, she does little more than nod and agree that 'Coming back at a later date' is the best idea. Also to be better equipped for sch an exploration.

Upon arriving at their destination and the Goblin leaping over and clinging to the side of the vertical rocks, then explaining where they have to go, Melthune's expression is unreadable beneath her helmet, but she nods at Pollux's comments about bigger boats.

"There was a distinct lack of 'You walk in under water' back at town....." Then she looks to every one.

"So...our option is left to follow the Goblin?" She asks.

Um...yeah...securing the raft is great and cudos to Jenner for his idea...But Melthune and the whole 'swimming' thing? This... might not end well.... *Shrug*

"You'll go down like an anchor in that metal, lass," Jenner says to Melthune. "D'you want help taking it off?

"Failin' that, you could chew up this bit of bubbly crystal I've got for a minute of air an' sort of... walk along as it were, on the bottom, but I don't promise that'll be easy or plain... dunno how far down this tunnel is an' all..." he adds, with an enquiring look at Snaga.

"How long's the tunnel, an' how far down, and how did the goblins get their own craft in?"

Melthune, why not take off the armor? With your strength, swimming is a breeze :D

Not quite the point.....

Melthune awaits the Goblin's estimates about the journey ahead. She seems to have not heard Jenner's 'helpful' comment about disrobing. Even as she does her best to keep the raft on an 'even keel' while they wait..

What is the point then? :D

Jenner looks bemused at the silence from Melthune regarding his honest offer to help her undo the many intricate pieces of a suit of full plate mail. Oh well. He shrugs to himself.

Continues to look at the men in the group .... (¬_¬)

We'll see how long/deep/far this supposed tunnel is. The Goblin might simply be leading us into a trap..... Jus' saying...

Snaga? Naaaah ;)

"Why so silent Melthune?" - Polux questions as she stares at them.

"This raft'll get bashed to nothin' by the waves if we let it drift, and then we'll have no way to get back to town, neither... hm, I've a notion, tho-- does anybody have pitons? You know, those spikes you hammer on into a rock?"[

Standing on the repaired raft and not jumping into the water until plans had been set, Taissa addressed the conversation around her.

"I have no such spikes, Holystone. But I agree with you, we cannot permit the raft to drift. Since Daya is not a swimmer, I shall have to leave her to watch over the raft and our heavier belongings. I have some rope, if it can be of help."

""We swim under water and find tunnel. It not far – we get in tunnel and swim through and reach open cave. Water goes through tunnel and comes out to other side of cliffs where big boats can be kept.”

"Is there another way around, to reach this place, Snaga? Daya cannot swim the tunnel." (Okay, at this stage I'm really confused as to what to do with Daya if we're all going to swim this tunnel...Can Snaga give direction to the open cave for Daya to fly and meet us there?)

Snaga? Naaaah ;)

"Why so silent Melthune?" - Polux questions as she stares at them.

"Catching my breath after all the hard slog, polling over the past hours." She replies, though still mainly watching the Goblin-limpet.

"So...our option is left to follow the Goblin?" She asks.

"Well, Snaga's been pretty reliable thus far. I cannot see his purpose in tricking us now. If you'd rather, you can remain on the raft while we make the swim..."

Dain, is there an option for Melthune to remain behind on the raft (take care of it and the heavier belongings) if she doesn't want to follow Snaga and finds swimming difficult in her armour? It doesn't seem as though Melthune wants to part with her armour at present, and that's her decision.

"Catching my breath after all the hard slog, polling over the past hours."

Melthune you poled for 40 mins (20 mins to the hill where we repaired the raft and then 20 mins back to the rock/place where we are supposed to submerge... *winks* The first lot of oar work was undertaken by Taissa and Hack, so Melthune wouldn't have been tired from that. lol

If there is an above-ground entrance, then I'd rather climb and take it.

If there is an above-ground entrance, then I'd rather climb and take it.

Taissa nodded at Hack's alternative. She flicked the heavy raindrops from her eyes as she looked to Snaga to give them more information.

Tais has Climb +8, Swim +9, so either way is okay with her. Just waiting on Snaga's info/reply.

Snaga prepares to leap into the water, and suddenly hears Polux’s concerns about the hydra and pauses.

"I get the feeling you know more about this than you are letting on Snaga, but what you know is your own business - don't worry, whatever is down there won't be going anywhere soon, and we have other matters to attend. We'll deal with this one our way back"

Snaga looks at Polux and shrugs.

”In swamp there have been other things – swamp not very… long? But very wide – goes distance of coast for many miles…”

He sucks on his teeth for a moment.

”There be other things in swamp – dire gators; big snakes; big bugs… but sometimes we see the lizard men, too, yes?”

”They be like men – only with lizard skin – lizard men not smart as orc or men... They make stone weapons; don’t make steel weapons – sometimes they take weapons from men – but they do not make them…” he says with a scowl.

”We fight them sometimes – I think maybe that pit is their pit; maybe they make snake monster thing their god to pray to and make blood offerings to it…” he adds, thinking a moment.

”But they are not here now – the rains maybe keep them in their lairs for now – that is good that it rained hard or we might have to fight them, too… But Snaga has not seen pit before... He see big hill here that he take you too, yes – but not much of swamps near this lair, no…” he says.

Snaga nods, then quickly prepares to dive in…

"There was a distinct lack of 'You walk in under water' back at town....."

Snaga pauses and looks at Melthune.

”Yes, yes – many things to be asked, many things for you to learn – you ask; Snaga answer. How does Snaga know you can’t swim? How does Snaga know that water is problem? What? You go in swamp and think water is not problem?” he says with a grunt.

”You in town long time – many things you could do – you buy box of potions – nothing else. Very good! You prepared!”

”Snaga think that maybe there other things you could get – why not get them? Why is that his fault? You knew it was swamp and swamp has water – is Snaga the chief that he must tell you what to bring? Snaga trusted you and now you say you are not ready!”

”You want to go in not under water but over water; go in front way – Snaga not come that way, he meet you inside then – Snaga not trust front way – men will not pick tunnel underwater to guard – why should they? But they maybe guard front way where big boat can be; so Snaga not go that way!”

"Is there another way around, to reach this place, Snaga? Daya cannot swim the tunnel." (Okay, at this stage I'm really confused as to what to do with Daya if we're all going to swim this tunnel...Can Snaga give direction to the open cave for Daya to fly and meet us there?)

Snaga pauses and looks at Taissa and nods –

”Yes, yes – south side there is open place, too. We go in this way, get in – then you send bird friend south to open place. She go in and fly to meet us… this tunnel leads to small… river? It leads to water-path through hill. But it comes up after only maybe fifty feet. So we swim up to water path and then breathe. Then we get out of water and walk on side of water to sneak up on front.”

You'd be swimming underwater for a total of 50 feet without the chance to come up for air - hard, but not impossible.

”If bird friend goes through south side she fly to water path and then follow it to us – we be there… but it may be tricky – there may be men… But Snaga think maybe men not care if bird goes in cave… But he does not know…” he adds with a shrug.

Taissa - Daya could also just wait outside when you go in and have orders to try to meet you at a certain place/time (as in "wait for us at the backdoor" - or something like that) if you don't want to try to send her in through the front.

On the plus side, it's a good thing White Fang stayed home - this would have been much harder for him to try...

Snaga then prepares to dive in…

"Hang on a tick," Jenner says to Snaga's explanation, hopefully before the little goblin goes over the edge. "How do the 'big boats' get in, eh? There's got to be another entrance if there's big watercraft in there. You might be able to swim like a fish, Snaga, but some of us,"

Stopping his dive, he turns to look at Jenner.

”Yes, yes – the front of hill… if you go to where beach should be, there is no beach – just many stones that are about… hmm… He makes a gesture to indicate that the broken stones that stab through the surf are only about 50-60 feet in height – tall enough to mess with a ship, but not nearly as tall as the 200 foot peak of this rocky hill) – good sailor moves between rocks, yes? It can be done! Then they get to big hill in middle, yes?” he says looking at Jenner.

”On south side of big hill is opening to cave – it maybe… umm… He makes a gesture to suggest that on the south side of the stony hill is a cave that is about 60 feet wide and about 50 feet up. A small ship, like a Dhow, or certainly a Longboat, could enter the mouth of the cave. – one they sail in to left and right are no beach, just rock wall – very smooth to roof… but if sail in about… umm… he makes a gesture to indicate that if a sailor enters the cave the walls to their left and right are very smooth up to the roof of the cave; but if the ship sails forward about 100 feet they’ll discover the “bottom” of the cave is pretty deep; so a ship could sail in there, drop anchor and be relatively hidden, and if sailors took a boat out from the ship they’d find a wide open rocky shelf (so think of the “Rocky Shelf” kind of like a very flat, very straight “beach” which isn’t sand, but a straight piece of rock like a pier) that they can dock their boats on… You take small boat to flat rocks and get out. Then inside of cave very straight – very smooth… You walk forward for a while and you find tunnels that go up!” he adds.

He looks at Jenner.

”If we go in front door we must take raft down big tunnel past their big boat, if they have big boat there… and they maybe have guards there on big boat and they see us on raft and shoot us with ship’s gun.”

He looks at Jenner with a cock of his head.

”Sometimes it better to go in back door then front, yes?” he says looking at Jenner.

"This raft'll get bashed to nothin' by the waves if we let it drift, and then we'll have no way to get back to town, neither..."

He shakes his head.

”From backdoor – yes! But if we go in – kill men, maybe we find their big boat? If they got no big boat, we kill men anyway and then go get trees and make new raft to sail back,” he says somewhat impatiently.

Snaga attempts to jump in the water again.

"Hmm, I've a notion, tho-- does anybody have pitons? You know, those spikes you hammer on into a rock?"

Snaga stops his dive and looks at Jenner.

”Climb gear be good to have!” he says seriously.

”Lots of gear in wild be good – but I think maybe group didn’t pack much,” he says with an ironically dry tone.

He prepares to jump in again as the group considers climbing to the top –

The height to the top is about 200 feet from the water. That’s 20 Climb Checks on slippery rocks at a roughly 60 degree angle – DC Check is set at base of 15 but with the condition of Slippery it bumps to a DC of 20 to achieve 10 feet. That won’t be very easy to climb to the top. Also, even if you get to the top, there really isn’t much up there; no real entrance that Snaga knows of - though it's possible that things might have changed since Men took over the cove... But you'd need to go up there and look around to be sure before you could be sure.

Dain, is there an option for Melthune to remain behind on the raft (take care of it and the heavier belongings) if she doesn't want to follow Snaga and finds swimming difficult in her armour? It doesn't seem as though Melthune wants to part with her armour at present, and that's her decision.

Yes - but the raft would be bobbing around and banging on the rocks. In theory what you could do is try to lash it to a tree a little far back from the cliffs and try to sort of swim in (much easier since you can come up for air) - but if Melthune stayed on the raft if it was attached to a tree she'd need to make a series of Reflex Checks to avoid falling in; also, there is the chance that the rope may break - those odds change over time, and so far there's no way of knowing how long you'll be in there.

If there is an above-ground entrance, then I'd rather climb and take it.

Snaga pauses and looks at Hack.

”Yes – south side of cave – big entrance – big enough for big boats to sail into. You could sail into it with raft, but then you sail down big tunnel with no place to hide – enemy could see you very easily on raft, if there is big boat there and they are by big boat. Then they might shoot you; then you spoil surprise,” he says with a grunt.

"As for roof? Snaga doesn't know - maybe men make holes in roof to climb up in; maybe not - only way to know is to go up there," he adds.

Then he sighs.

Then he prepares to dive in again but stops – waiting to see if there are any more questions.

Okay. I'm currently a little bit frustrated, and here's why: again we're having this 'you didn't ask these things, so you don't know these things' situation.

I preface this with I get it, you want players to be proactive. However, there's a line between 'reasonably proactive' and.... this.

Let's say you had a friend who offered to take you to this great restaurant he knew to eat at. He was a local, so he's serving as your guide. You get into your car and drive an extended period of time to this place, your friend in the car with you. He's been to this place a ton of times, so he knows how to get there and where it's at, it's great.

Except you get there, and it turns out there's no legal parking, and your car is going to be towed if you try and park it there. And when you're like 'hey, man, what the heck' to your friend, he's like 'oh, well, you didn't ask if we could park there, so, you know, I didn't tell you.'

I think most people would reasonably expect that someone serving as their guide, someone who has been around them for a period of months, would not NEED TO BE ASKED basic information that a guide would reasonably provide without having to be specifically asked.

Secondly, and related to this, we're no longer in terrain that I think of as 'a marsh'.

This is a marsh. This is a marsh. This is a marsh. This is a marsh. Marshes, by definition, are transitional ground between terrestrial and aquatic areas. We were told we were going into marshy terrain. This implies certain things: vegetation such as trees to secure a watercraft, areas of land, relatively shallow water.

What is being described here with the rocky situation is more like.... this. Rough enough water that our raft is literally in danger of being bashed against the rocks and destroyed, rocky terrain, no vegetation to secure the watercraft to, etc, etc, etc.

You want the players to be proactive. That's great. But what you have actually set up is a situation where players WERE proactive for terrain A, and made assumptions for traveling in terrain A, and then you actually gave them terrain B, and when the players are like 'well that's not really what we expected' you're having the NPC guide be like 'well you didn't ask'.

As a friendly NPC who is ostensibly guiding us, it is reasonable to anticipate Snaga would have advised us in advance that we are going to a) need to swim underwater for a sustained period of time to get in. (That's different than 'hey, you might have to swim in a marsh if you fall in'.) b) that we would have to basically abandon our watercraft at some point, probably consigning it to be destroyed since there is no simple way to do something as basic as 'mooring your craft within a reasonable distance of the cave'. and c) that there would be no way for creatures like, say, Daya, to get in.

A helpful NPC who had two days to observe our current approach would have been like 'hey, you guys are going to run into some problems doing it like this'.

Pulling this card of 'well, you didn't ask Snaga, so, that's your fault' is just.... it feels like we're being set up to fail, because we're making basic assumptions about the terrain that an NPC who knows better is not bothering to correct.

I concur...This is not a marsh...we were actually ready for that.

Swamps and marshes are surrounded by trees and aquatic vegetation, have roots and silt on the floor, and do not have rocky outcrops and cave systems/tunnels beneath. So I'm in agreement with Holystone - this isn't swamp or marsh territory we're dealing with. If we were going to quickly wander into coastal ocean/cliffs, Snaga should have said so before we left Beacon as he is the guide and no actual map of the dens was provided to us.

Okay. I'm currently a little bit frustrated, and here's why: again we're having this 'you didn't ask these things, so you don't know these things' situation.

First, I appreciate you have concerns about the game. In the future, though, please just send them to me in a PM and I’ll happily address them.

EDIT: I’ve been working on a response via PM and I just noticed the new comments. That said, I put a response on the Discussion Thread isntead.

Location:By the Lair…
Date: Pharast 19th
Time: 4:15 PM
Moon Cycle (Check March 19th 2014 for Moon Cycle): Moon
Weather: Roughly 50° F – Heavy Rain; cold wind and damp (Wind-chill makes it feel more like 42°

The raft bumps and bangs against the muddy crest of the hill.

Daya has swooped off and has been to the top and scouted about. While she is gone, Snaga leaps forward in a loping motion onto the edge of the cliff and then pulls out a small series of scraps of parchment and looks at the others, then uses a stick of charcoal to sketch out a quick map of what they will be encountering as Daya moves off.

”Right… so; on the top of the hill there is an opening for air holes to the caves, but also a small chimney that leads to the lower halls… The air hole’s likely been widened so that you could move men and supplies to the top,” he adds.

Daya returns and agrees with Snaga, and adds some extra details to the summit which can be seen here.

Snaga grunts.

”Aye! See the stub of the chimney sticking out of the ground? And next to it there’s the stairway going down… The real trick here is that there’s a crude fence that they must have put recently… looks about three feet in height…”

Daya caws – indicating that there are no guards up there now.

”Good! Must be the rain,” Snaga says with a grunt.

”Well, anyhow, once we hop the wall we can move into the covering – this’s what we’ll see on the third floor – here.”

”The third floor’s got some rooms to hang out in, nothing fancy… not really that big or impressive. Don’t know who will be up there, you know?’ he adds.

”If you see stairs in the bottom left they’ll take you down to the second floor which we can see here. There’s a big chimney in a place where folks like to eat – a room to store foods and things behind the fireplace to cook and some other rooms to the sides… There was a big table and chairs there before – don’t know if it’s still there, but it might be…”

”Then we take the stairs in the bottom left and they take us down to the first floor here.”

”See where the stairs come out on the bottom left? If you tread the pier you’ll come to the same channel that cuts through the rocks – the water runs through the cave and powers the water-wheel that you see in the right-side room.”

”They can use the water-wheel to help them do construction work inside when they work on repairing stuff for their ships. There’s a small set of docks there – don’t know what they got in the rooms, but that’s where they’ll have their ships.”

”First floor’s ceiling’s about maybe… sixty feet above the waterline… second floor is about twenty feet above that, and the other two floors are about ten feet up each.”

He grunts.

”We can try to swim in the channel and try to weasel our way through the water-wheel… Or we can swim a bit farther down until we get to the docks and piers hop up there and go in the front doors.”

”Or we can try moving up the hill and go in through the roof and move down each level, floor by floor and try to clean ‘em out.”

”But – if we go that way and get overwhelmed, then we’ll need to rush back to the top and there won’t be much of a way out…”

He tosses the charcoal stick into the deluge that you’re floating in and looks at his companions.

”Well – your move… If you go up the top there ain’t no one up there on the roof on account of the rain… but there may be a lad hiding in the stairwell – and if so, that’ll be a problem, maybe,” he adds.

”Anyhow – your call on what route you want.”

As the company ponders their options, Jenner strokes his chin.

”Any way ye slice it I be reckoning that we may be needing a quick-escape in a pinch, savvy?” he says rubbing his stubbly chin.

”Ye’re all a good crew, to be sure, but – no offense – I’m the best sailor in the lot… Mebbe it’d be best if I hang back on the raft and man it… If things go south ya’ll can scramble fast and dodgy-like to it and we can push off fast and loose ‘em in the swamps,” he adds with a sage nod.

Alright, gang – if you want to go up to the summit, that’s one move – if you want to go in through the tunnel, that’s cool, too – I just need to know what your plans are next.

As stated, Jenner’s sitting this one out; he’s going to be an NPC on the raft to hold it and any gear there. You guys now have a map of the place – but of course, no location of any guys inside and no real knowledge of what they do with their gear.

As requested I’ve decided to keep this as “low-magic” and “high-tactics” as possible.

That said; your suggested OPORD is as follows: I’d recommend Hack and Polux advance with Snaga and Taissa following up with the standard 2x2 Cover Formation; Jenner’s clearly at your AWR; I’d make the first stairway your CP as you advance, you’ll likely run into some FOBGOBLINS down by the pier (for obvious reasons); also, it might be handy to keep Melthune back as your QRF and (just as obviously) I’d have Daya as your scout, just make sure she’s In the Pipe 5x5.

Ooh Rah! And, uh… Good Hunting.

I’m eager to do some tactical combat with you guys – but as a heads up; this one’s going to be pretty nasty – tactics will be very important – try not to do die; it just may happen this time around.

FYI – I’ll definitely need a marching order, here. The halls are typically 10 feet wide, that means you can move up two at a time, if you’d like. Even so, I need to know who’s where when you advance. Also, if you’re planning on climbing up, I’m going to allow it without rolls, I just need to know what’s up.

While I'm at it - you may also want to make sure you're doing things like (if applicable) Stealth Checks as well as checking for traps on places like the hatch going downstairs. Not saying there's going to be traps there for sure, but being prepared would be a good plan.

Since two of you can move on point at the same time as the hallways are 10 feet wide, how far back will the second group/person be? Will it be right after each other, or will it be staggered - and if so, how far?

Anyway, good luck - and check your light sources when you get into the caves.

Finally - once I get the general positions up as well as actions, I'll toss up the actual "Battle Map" for whatever floor you'll be heading into. Okay, I'm going to go now - but anyway, I'll see you all soon.

”We can try to swim in the channel and try to weasel our way through the water-wheel… Or we can swim a bit farther down until we get to the docks and piers hop up there and go in the front doors.”

”Or we can try moving up the hill and go in through the roof and move down each level, floor by floor and try to clean ‘em out.”

”But – if we go that way and get overwhelmed, then we’ll need to rush back to the top and there won’t be much of a way out…”

He tosses the charcoal stick into the deluge that you’re floating in and looks at his companions.

”Well – your move… If you go up the top there ain’t no one up there on the roof on account of the rain… but there may be a lad hiding in the stairwell – and if so, that’ll be a problem, maybe,” he adds.

With an eye on Snaga's drawings and an ear on what was being said and what Daya had relayed, Taissa silently pondered the options before her/them.

Looking across to Polux, she gives voice to her thoughts, "Melthune will not make it in the water with her heavy armour and she has refused to take it off. So it seems the only option is to go up and move down each floor. I don't like that if we must retreat, moving back up and out will be trickier, yet we may have to take that chance. What say you?"

Thinking upon the marching order, she adds, "I will stay toward the back, bow ready, with Melthune taking the rear. I will have Daya scout for us as she has the advantage of flight."

To the group: Do you want Daya inside the structure with us or staying topside, on the roof, waiting to attack etc ...?

Dain, can you please not use the acronyms/initialisms because some of us had to actually look up what they all were because I'm not in the army or defence forces. Thanks.

Melthune's player made a posting saying he was busy at work and not well (feel better soon Mel). Is she going to be npc'd?

"Melthune will not make it in the water with her heavy armour and she has refused to take it off. So it seems the only option is to go up and move down each floor."

"Pah! That ain't the only option! Why - if she took her bleeding armor off it wouldn't be a problem," Snaga grumbles, but then buttons his lip and listens to orders.

"I will stay toward the back, bow ready, with Melthune taking the rear. I will have Daya scout for us as she has the advantage of flight."

Snaga nods.

"Righto, Chief," he says with a brisk nod, his eyes turning to look at Hack and Polux thoughtfully, then he shrugs.

Snaga hops onto the hillock and waits for the others to move forward as well, as it seems as if they're planning on moving up to the summit as Jenner moves the raft back to the treeline in the marsh.

To the group: Do you want Daya inside the structure with us or staying topside, on the roof, waiting to attack etc ...?

Snaga looks at Daya.

"Once we get inside if Daya ain't near us, it's likely she ain't going to find us easy - after all, who knows were we'll go or what will happen next."

Dain, can you please not use the acronyms/initialisms because some of us had to actually look up what they all were because I'm not in the army or defence forces. Thanks.

But Tai, it's just basic tactics and strategy lingo ;)

Taissa hefts her range weapon and slides an arrow out of the quiver and prepares to "knock and load" her bow, glances at the group and offers some quick tactical observations - "Tactical Observations".

Sorry gang, but I've been getting a little punchy without much going on (which may explain Snaga's strange metamorphosis into some sort of WWII Field Sergeant). For now we wait for Hack and Polux to check in, I guess.

And Tai - all kidding aside, I'll keep the lingo low-key when things start rolling. I'm just excited to get back to the game is all :)

Polux listens intently to the description provided by Snaga, then turns his attention to Taissa - "If we enter from the top, getting out will definitely NOT be easy, if at all possible. But on the other hand there is the possibility of having Daya with us - though in such close quarters I think it may be too much of a risk for her, so I'd rather she didn't go in" - he comments.

Looking across to Polux, she gives voice to her thoughts, "Melthune will not make it in the water with her heavy armour and she has refused to take it off. So it seems the only option is to go up and move down each floor. I don't like that if we must retreat, moving back up and out will be trickier, yet we may have to take that chance. What say you?"

Polux raises an eyebrow, and looks at Melthune - "The thing is, if we go through the underwater tunnel, moving back out can be much easier - we dive back in the water and swim the hell out of there - of course they can chase, but climbing up a chimney in retreat... If it comes to that, we all die in there" - he looks back at the top of the hill - "So it doesn't make any sense to take the worst option because Melthune refuses to take off her armor" - he looks at her directly - "Sorry my friend, but we have no alternative - you need to either take it off, risk drowning with it, or stay outside" - he shrugs.

I guess depending on the situation, Polux will be ahead scouting - his Stealth is half decent, though his Perception is not however :D

Off topic: I think if Jenner stays outside, we're gonna be gimped again - HARD.

I guess depending on the situation, Polux will be ahead scouting - his Stealth is half decent, though his Perception is not however :D

The general maps are already up via the above posts; the hallways are roughly 10 feet wide, so you can move forward two at a time.

The hatch can be seen on the image above - it's the "Green Patch" with the cross-hatching like stairs. The chimney is small, but it's next to it.

I put it up again here. But it's all above, including each floor, though they're not given a "grid" at this time.

Also, even if you enter the roof, you can still exit the water tunnel on the bottom, if you'd like.

Off topic: I think if Jenner stays outside, we're gonna be gimped again - HARD.

Probably - but I'm gambling that at least some of your crew has at least watched a few movies with CQB Tactics (that's "Close Quarters Battle" tactics) and will be doing obvious things like moving with Stealth; "clear" each room before advancing; check your blind spots; watch your cross fire (if applicable); check for tripwires; and that sort of thing. In which case, you probably should be okay - but tactics will make a HUGE difference.

In addition to carrying a bow, Snaga can carry any of Jenner's scrolls, since Snaga can use Divine Scrolls (unfortunately he does not have the ability to Channel Positive Energy - so he can zap a range of bad guys; but he can't heal the party with a Channel Burst).

Looks like you guys are still in "narrative" - and we're waiting on Hack to check in, too. When I know more about your method of entry, I'll pop your party up to that point and open up the "Battle Map" as needed. In the meantime, good luck!

FYI - Side Note: Depending on the enemy ship and its crew compliment you could have anywhere from 12-30 men inside. It's 4:15 PM - keep that in mind when you enter the lair and above all, Good Hunting!

I care not for which way we enter. Once inside, Polux can take the point with me. We will check every room and move slowly and carefully. Let's decide now.

Like my character, it does not really matter which way we enter. It is a dungeon crawl once inside. We either die by the sword, or not. I certainly do not plan on running out of there once I get in tight quarters.

After a bit of hard work, the company reaches the summit.

Melthune – you have an entire case of potions – how many of them did you want to bring inside with you? I’m going to say that you can’t bring the whole case, but you can certainly bring some of the potions as you’d like – just give me a number and keep track of your Carrying Capacity.

If you don’t let me know how many you take in your next post, I’ll just assume you’re taking 2 of them.

As the company gathers around the summit they notice that a recently constructed crude palisade fence has been erected. The fence is only about three feet high and you’d guess it’s more to keep meandering animals from moving toward the entrance and the chimney.

There is a plume of smoke rising from the chimney; but it’s not thick. The hatch is heavy wooden door slats fixed to a metal grating. This hatch also recently constructed. There is a latch you can pull to lift it.

The rain is falling hard up here; you don’t see much signs of tracks, though the inside of the fence is a muddy mess; it looks like it’s been walked on quite a bit in the past several days. How many people have walked on it you don’t know; but outside the fence is grass, inside is mud.

Cool – So for now I’ve got Hack and Polux on point; Taissa and Melthune following them (Taissa with her bow – someone tell me what weapon Melthune is carrying). And I have Snaga at that back – please tell me what weapon you’d like him to be carrying. Snaga has only memorized Cure Light Wounds via his spells at this time. He can cast it a total of ONE time a day; and whatever Scrolls Jenner gave him.

If I’m wrong on marching order, please correct me.

Meantime, I need the point man to make a Perception Check at the hatch.

Also, as you advance, I need everyone in the party to make a Stealth Check (though for now you can Take 10 on that as you have time; just let me know if that’s your plan).

Finally – is Daya going or waiting outside?

Once I get the Stealth Perception Checks as well as the confirmation on marching order you'll see the battle map for the third floor.

Heading to bed - very late, here. Daya will wait outside. Taissa has at least two Healing Remedies on her and has her lucerne hammer strapped on her back and musket on strap at her shoulder. She's using her bow at present. I'll post more tomorrow.

Heading to bed - very late, here. Daya will wait outside. Taissa has at least two Healing Remedies on her and has her lucerne hammer strapped on her back and musket on strap at her shoulder. She's using her bow at present. I'll post more tomorrow.

Cool; just waiting to see what the rest of the gang does; meantime - Good to Go!

Stealth: 1d20 - 2 ⇒ (20) - 2 = 18
Perception: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (12) + 9 = 21

In the Discussion Thread I suggested this order. Snaga, Polux, Hack, Tai, Melthune.

[dice=Stealth]1d20-2

[dice=Perception]1d20+9

In the Discussion Thread I suggested this order. Snaga, Polux, Hack, Tai, Melthune.

Nice job via the Stealth Check, Hack!

I'll see how the Perception check goes once everyone else tosses up their rolls.

Snaga glances at Hack -

"The halls are wide, yes? We could move two at a time - then no one could move past to hit us. And friends could help each other in a fight, maybe..."

He looks at the heavily armored melee fighter Melthune who Hack suggested march at the rear of the party; he considers his own melee fighting not as handy when people can see him, and thinks very hard about the marching order as he thumbs through the scrolls that Jenner gave him.

Then he shrugs.

"I will go where I am told, if you want me at front; I be at front," he says slowly.

Hack whispers,

Go ahead, then, Snaga, to the back. Polux and me will lead, Tai in the middle, and you and Melthune bring up the rear.

Hack whispers,

Go ahead, then, Snaga, to the back. Polux and me will lead, Tai in the middle, and you and Melthune bring up the rear.

"Aye," Snaga says.

"I be in back - give me bow or gun; I shoot things in front," he says with a grunt as he looks at the others.

He moves over to Hack and helps him check the hatch for traps.

Perception Check to Aid
1d20 + 9 ⇒ (6) + 9 = 15

EDIT: +2 to Pointman's Perception Check for any traps on the Hatch.

Then, after offering his help while he waits for someone to hand him a ranged weapon, and for the party to advance to the hatch and make their plan, he pauses and takes a small tin pan from his pack.

He takes a knife and makes a slit on his palm and lets blood drip into the pan. Then he stoops and takes a small amount of mud from the crest of the hillock and scoops a handful of it and drops the slimy mess in the pan with the blood. Finally he takes a small vial from a pocket in his vest and and dumps a pinch of some powder into the pan.

Holding it in his hand, he stares at it hard and mutters something; a sudden spark ignites in the pan and a small flash of green fire shines for a moment, then disappears.

"By Vosegus," he says with a grunt.

Then he takes his fingers and mixes the ooze in the bowl into a red paste and smears it in lines over his forehead and makes several wide stripes down his nose and cheeks under his eyes.

The rain drips down his face and the color oozes over his flesh.

"Let's kill something," he says with a growl.

Sorry, quick post again.

Melthune has two bandoleers. Enough to carry and easily get to twelve potions per belt. So 24 vials strapped across her armor...or as a double belt.

Polux shakes his head at Hack- "No my friend. If we are moving in pairs, I will not be taking the lead with you - that is a role for Melthune and all the metal she wears. I will stay in second line with Taissa"

Polux can take point if scouting is wanted - as in, he moves ahead, scouts the area, then doubles back to inform everyone of what he has found (keep in mind he is human though, and if the area is in complete darkness all this will be a moot point). But if we are moving as a team, I'm not gonna pit my puny AC18 against Melthune's AC26. Makes sense, no?

Stealth: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (20) + 11 = 31
Perception: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (17) + 5 = 22

Okay, so the marching order is Hack, Melthune, Polux, Taissa, Snaga? And Dain what checks do you need from Daya as she stays on/above the roof?

Sorry, quick post. No time to role play. :(

Agreed that Mel makes the best wall. but the initial room maybe should be done 'quietly by the less 'clanky' member. Get Snaga to show Mel where the stairs leading down are and she can block them against reinforcements who might come up to help their fellow bandits.

Much cheers to all.

I thought we were still approaching the chimney :D

Melthune, if we do it quietly, then there should be no reinforcements - also, if it is me, Taissa, you, Hack or Snaga killing anyone on the third floor, the noise produced will be the same. As far as I am aware there is no such thing as 'in-combat' stealth for silent kills ;)

I already put forth what is the part that Polux can play in this - forward scout, gathering intel, and reporting back. If we move as a group, then he sticks to the middle ground, waiting for an opening, while the frontliners push through. Polux is not a frontliner.

Sorry, quick post again.

Melthune has two bandoleers. Enough to carry and easily get to twelve potions per belt. So 24 vials strapped across her armor...or as a double belt.

Actually it's only 23 - you already had one.

Also, as I understand it a standard potion is 1 lbs. That's an additional 23 lbs. of gear on you - but with a Strength of 18 it probably won't matter.

[dice=Stealth]d20+11

[dice=Perception]d20+5

Polux - with the Aid Checks from Snaga and Hack you get a total of 26 - it's enough to see the trap.

As Polux studies the hatch carefully in the rain Snaga and Hack move up with him.

Hack's eyes narrow and Snaga takes a deep intake of air as Polux prepares to lift the hatch.

Pressing his hand gently on Polux's hand, Snaga nods and places the tip of his knife into the ground and gently lifts - there is a small, thin, wire laying in the mud.

He looks up intently.

"Hey!" he says, looking at Hack and Polux.

Right - before you go anywhere, I'd recommend attempting to Disarm the Trap.

Good luck!