Captain Morton waits until the two ships are within hailing range (100 feet), to yell his introductions and ask what destination you are bound for.
He also questions you about your allegiances to the Free Captains and
whose fleet you serve. Regardless of your answers to his questions, Morton assumes you are bluffing, and demands a toll (equivalent to at least 5 points of plunder) for sailing through “his” territory.
Markizio scoffed and looked at Kung while he waited for his captain to respond, "Did you hear that, Kung? He wants a lot of money to let us pass. I mean a lot of money. It's like he wants your pegleg to let the Drake sail on by. Would you give him your pegleg?"
"A toll? Your territory?" Marnir laughs disdainfully. "This is no more your territory than it is mine, you coward. If you were a true pirate you'd be out there making your own money, not extorting it out of your betters."
"My name is Marnir Saltvig, Captain of the Unbound Drake, Lord of Tidewater Rock, Master of the Tidewater Fleet, and marqued Free Captain of the Shackles. I was prepared to negotiate with you, rather than killing you and taking your ship. But your impudence has soured my spirit somewhat. Are we ready to destroy this bastard first mate?" he asks, the implication of their greater power made clear for Morton.
Niobe quietly gifts Kung with barkskin once more in preparation for the upcoming battle.
"My name is Marnir Saltvig, Captain of the Unbound Drake, Lord of Tidewater Rock, Master of the Tidewater Fleet, and marqued Free Captain of the Shackles. I was prepared to negotiate with you, rather than killing you and taking your ship. But your impudence has soured my spirit somewhat. Are we ready to destroy this bastard first mate?" he asks, the implication of their greater power made clear for Morton.
Markizio just stood by his captain, magical blade just bursting with energy drawn, "That we are captain."
He then turned to the sailors, "You all heard your captain. Destroy any who resist!"
-------------
HP 59/59
AC 21, touch 13, flat-footed 19
Conditions: shield so AC=25, shock burst
Melee (+1 keen falcata): +9 = +1(magical) +5(base) +3(STR)
Melee Damage (+1 keen falcata): 1d8+4 = +1(weapon) +3 (str), 17-20, x3
+2 dam if arcane strike, -2/+4 if 1H power attack
5/6 arcane pool
Spell used: shield
There is a frozen moment of silence as Marnir's words ring out over the gap between the two ships. You can see all round the Unbound Drake your crew straightening up, pride and determination filling their faces as their captains words put steel in their spines.
"You.. You dare!" Morton splutters weakily, his bravado punctured leaving only the weakling behind. "Attack!" He yells furiously to his crew.
Niobe's suspicions proves true as the ships close rapidly. The Dryad's grave tactics are to close and board, just as the Unbound Drakes are. When it closes the figurehead on the Grave animates, detaching from it's setting to loom menacingly as it prepares to board.
Ship sentinels are animated constructs that are bound to a specific vessel and to that ship’s captain. Crafted to resemble a humanoid figurehead, a ship sentinel normally rests at the prow of its ship, granting good fortune and protection to the crew. But in times of dire
need, the captain can also activate the ship sentinel, causing it to spring to life and fight alongside the vessel’s crew. Although individual features of ship sentinels may vary, all ship sentinels are made of wood and have the same general statistics.
A ship sentinel stands roughly 6 feet tall and weighs 400 pounds
With both ships heading straight at each other their isn't much time to fire the ships weapons more than once. The Drake's weapons rake the Grave as she closes, Red Mary as always had her weapons loaded and targeted.
You have 6 rounds to prepare or fire spells and weapons, then combat begins.
Markizio was not worried about the crew or its cowardly captain, it was the construct that just became animated that gave him concern.
He pointed it out, "That's a construct. A big and ugly construct that wants to eat our babies."
He looked at Niobe and Jane, "Let's see what we can do from a distance to the captain first and then his crew. We'll leave the construct for when we close in."
The magus followed suit and sent a few missiles to the captain.
---------
HP 59/59
AC 21, touch 13, flat-footed 19
Conditions: shield so AC=25, shock burst
Melee (+1 keen falcata): +9 = +1(magical) +5(base) +3(STR)
Melee Damage (+1 keen falcata): 1d8+4 = +1(weapon) +3 (str), 17-20, x3
+2 dam if arcane strike, -2/+4 if 1H power attack
5/6 arcane pool
Spell used: shield, magic missile,
Marnir manages to cast a few spells as he steers the Drake into an advantageous position for the boarding action, improving his defences and the combat prowess of both him and his crew.
"Stand ready!" he calls as the ship's approach, before launching into a bellowing war chant.
Kung has his last javelin out, wound with its amentum thrower. His fury rises as the Dryad's Grave continues on its boarding course towards the Drake. As his fury rises, his pegleg taps its rhythm before he heaves it across the narrowing distance between the ships.
HP 82+14/82
AC 19, touch 10, flat-footed 16 (+6 armor, +3 dex, +3 natural (barkskin), -1 inspired rage, -2 rage)
Fort: +13, Ref: +11, Will: +9 (+2 morale (inspired rage), +2 rage)
All saves: +4 morale vs. fear (battle cry), +4 competance vs. spells/-like (superstition)
Conditions: barkskin, blur, battle cry, inspired rage, rage
Melee (+3 furious greatsword): +19/+12 (+6 BAB, +7 str, +3 enhancement, -0/-2 power attack, +1 morale (battle cry), +2 rage)
Melee Damage (+3 furious greatsword): 2d6+21 (+10 str, +3 enhancement, +6 power attack, +2 rage)
Ranged (javelin, amentum, 50'): +10 (+6 BAB, +3 dex, +1 morale (battle cry))
Ranged Damage (javelin): 1d8+10 (+7 str, +1 whetstone, +2 rage)
14/15 rds Rage remaining
"Those animated things are always funny about magic. Sometimes they just can't be hurt at all. Let's sink their captain!"
Niobe continues calling upon the power of the seas, channeling increasing amounts of power. First she makes a sinuous waving motion and lays a hand on Kung again, then she makes the familiar sign calling the thunder.
Morton curses as Markizio's missiles flash across the waves and slam into him. He's casting his Shield to prevent this happening again when Niobe drops a lightning bolt on him. As the lightning comes from above the railings are no cover, he tries to scramble for shelter and fails.
As soon as the enemy captain falls, Niobe switches to blasting the crew of the enemy ship.
When the enemy ship prepares to board, she summons even more lightning in the form of ball lightning placed on the boarding plank.
Seeing the new foes coming across. Jane bends over the railing of the top deck and vomits a swarm of spiders down onto the main deck. Those spiders move over the plank onto the foe's ship.
Markizio high0fived Niobe as the cowardly captain went down under their combined magical might.
He then got ready for the onslaught, "Kung, come with me and let's take out that moving statue."
---------
HP 59/59
AC 21, touch 13, flat-footed 19
Conditions: shield so AC=25, shock burst, haste
Melee (+1 keen falcata): +9 = +1(magical) +5(base) +3(STR)
Melee Damage (+1 keen falcata): 1d8+4 = +1(weapon) +3 (str), 17-20, x3
+2 dam if arcane strike, -2/+4 if 1H power attack
2/6 arcane pool
Spell used: shield, magic missile, magic missile, magic missile, magic missile
The Construct steps forward, ignoring the spiders milling around it's carved hooves, stiking remorselessly at [/b]Markizio[/b]
The oversized fist fanning Markizio's face as it passes closely.
The more loyal of Morton's press forward, the you note in the background several sailors taking the chance to settle scores with an unpopular officer.
He dodges Niobe's Ball lightning and attacks Kung, probably the last bad decision he'll every make.
Pressing forward after his comrade the Red pirate howls as he runs directly into Niobe's welcoming gift.
The Party may now take their actions.
A lot of the other crew are not pressing too hard, and some are avoiding the spider swarm.
Following up on his words, the magus moved to engage the construct.
He carefully structured his movements to not present an opening and then unleashed his spell and blade at the walking statue.
-----------
HASTE
HP 59/59
AC 21, touch 13, flat-footed 19
Conditions: shield so AC=25, shock burst, haste
Melee (+1 keen falcata): +9 = +1(magical) +5(base) +3(STR)
Melee Damage (+1 keen falcata): 1d8+4 = +1(weapon) +3 (str), 17-20, x3
+2 dam if arcane strike, -2/+4 if 1H power attack
2/6 arcane pool
Spell used: shield, magic missile, magic missile, magic missile, magic missile, shocking grasp
When the pirate in the green doublet menaces Kung with his boarding axe, the half-orc--at least a head shorter than the boarding pirate--merely laughs, a full-bodied chortle that ends with a menacing glare that might peer into the man's soul if Kung had any rational intellect behind his own eyes at the moment. The lack of any sense of logical direction might be what makes the laugh and glare so unnerving.
Unconcerned with the trumped-up deckhand, Kung turns his back to the man and follows Markizio's lead instead, taking a short step with a single follow-through from his greatsword at the wooden attacker.
Intimidating Glare (Ex): The barbarian adds her Strength modifier in place of her Charisma modifier on all Intimidate checks to demoralize a foe. She can attempt an Intimidate check to demoralize an adjacent foe as a move action instead of a standard action. If the barbarian successfully demoralizes an adjacent foe, that foe is shaken for the remainder of the barbarian's current rage.
AC 20, touch 11, flat-footed 16 (+6 armor, +3 dex, +3 natural (barkskin), +1 dodge (haste), -1 inspired rage, -2 rage)
Speed: 60 ft (+30 enhancement (haste))
Fort: +13, Ref: +12 (+1 dodge (haste)), Will: +9 (+2 morale (inspired rage), +2 rage)
All saves: +4 morale vs. fear (battle cry), +4 competance vs. spells/-like (superstition)
Conditions: barkskin, blur, haste, battle cry, inspired rage, rage
Melee (+3 furious greatsword): +20/+13/+18 (+6 BAB, +7 str, +3 enhancement, -0/-2/-2 power attack, +1 morale (battle cry), +2 rage, +1 haste)
Melee Damage (+3 furious greatsword): 2d6+21 (+10 str, +3 enhancement, +6 power attack, +2 rage)
Ranged (javelin, amentum, 50'): +10 (+6 BAB, +3 dex, +1 morale (battle cry))
Ranged Damage (javelin): 1d8+10 (+7 str, +1 whetstone, +2 rage)
13/15 rds Rage remaining
The huge wooden figure takes up more of the Drake's deck than Marnir would like, and is clearly much more of a threat to his ship than the boarders trying to make their way across further aft.
He wades in alongside Markizio and Kung, their combined blades already hacking away at the giant figurehead. The coarse syllables of his war chant ring out across the deck.
Jane concentrates to move the swarm onto the other plank, bridging the gap between the two ships.
"Hurry and knock the plank down." she yells.
Your crew responds as always, swamping the other crew quickly and violently.
Markizio performs a dazzling display of arcane swordsmanship, sadly in vain as none of his strikes come even close to the COnstruct.
Kung on the other simply steps up and swings at it as if it were an annoying tree, his powerful blow staggering the construct.
Marnir joins Kung in playing woodsman, his axe chopping brutally into the construct twice.
Looking almost destroyed the construct continues mindlessly following it's last commands. Attacking Markizio
Missing Markizio twice.
The party may go.
Not liking how the big guy just walked all over her bugs and onto their ship, Jane points her finger at him and fires a bolt of webbing.
The Spiders in the swarm continue to crawl over the crewmate of the other ship.
distraction Fort 14
Relishing the bite of his axe into the giant wooden figure, Marnir hacks away again and again, his war chant rising into a scream of battle-lust. "Bring it down!" he roars over the thwack of his axe into the figurehead.
While it ignores the Webbing clinging to it the Construct doens't have time to react as Marnir contemptuously ends it existence with a powerful blow of his fearsome black axe.
The sounds of battle fade quickly as the survivors of the Dryad's grave crew surrender with great speed.
Congratulations, you've taken another ship, got the ring you sought, have some loot and you can have a level to go with it.
Markizio looked at his energized blade and the fallen foe and smirked, "Well captain, I guess it's good thing it's down without me having to clean my blade."
He then went and congratulated the rest of the officers and crew.
While taking a look at the loot, he said, "I think we should keep the ship, maybe squibble it and add it to our fleet."
-----------
"Fancy ship. Kung think keep good. We fix walking figure man, make work for us? Maybe make stronger so it not die so fast next time?"
Niobe, wide-eyed, comes down from her battle casting and releases her lightning harmlessly into the ocean. (Well, except maybe for a few fish.) She surveys the surrender and the rout and the fallen remains of the bowsprit and simply mouths "wow."
She checks to see if any of the crew were badly injured, then she replies to Kung, "I don't know how to fix something like that... we'd need to hire a powerful magician, I think."
Marnir steps aside as the now-inert construct falls to the deck, and watches as his crew round up the placid survivors of the Dryad's Grave. He breathes hard as the rigours of battle overwhelm him, and he sheathes his axe before joining the officers.
"It's a much fancier vessel than a lot of the flotsam we've sold recently. If we can find a crew and a captain then we could definitely add her to the fleet."
Markizio looks at the horned wooden statue, neatly chopped up by the captain, "I don't think we want that thing on our ship. If it looked like a drake maybe..."
He turned to their 'associate', "So now that we have the ring, how does it work?"
Haneilius Fitch nods excitedly. "Ah yes. Well once it's worn for a day you touch it the bone and you will know where the rest of the body lies. Though you will still need to be close. That's where my knowledge of the course of the Banshee is needed. We take the same course and check daily until we find where she went down?"
With the new ship needing to be crewd and squibbed you take some time arranging this. Thanks to most of her crew surrendering quickly you won't need to send many of yours to fill her berths.
For her new captain the standouts are.
Crimson Cogward Ranger4/Rogue3.
Rosie Cusswell Fighter 7
Sandara Quinn Cleric5/Swashbuckler2
"Aye, not sure I'd want something like that on the front of the Drake," Marnir agrees, kicking a stray chunk of wood back toward the fallen figurehead.
He listens carefully as Fitch explains his plan. "Sounds like you've got this all thought out. Why don't you liaise with Jane to plot the course, and we can get going once we've recrewed our prize." He turns back to Markizio.
"First mate, will you see to sorting out a prize crew? Make sure that we don't leave all of Morton's crew behind, don't want them trying to take their ship back. And I think Rosie or Sandara would be our best options to take charge, see which of them wants to step up."
"First mate, will you see to sorting out a prize crew? Make sure that we don't leave all of Morton's crew behind, don't want them trying to take their ship back. And I think Rosie or Sandara would be our best options to take charge, see which of them wants to step up."
Markizio nodded and brought Kung into the mix, "C'mon big guy, let's go talk to the captured pirates and see which ones want to join a real crew."
It took some time to count and divvy up the loot, including giving Fitch his agreed upon share.
He then sought out both Sandara and Rosie to see which one of them wanted their own ship right now. "Listen, we think you boh deserve a ship and to sail on your own as part of the Drake's fleet so if it's not now, it's coming soon. Which one of you wants that opportunity now? You'll take some of the captured sailors but also we'll give you some of the people here so you'l be well guarded."
Rosie & Sandara go into a huddle, followed by a whispered conversation as they furiously negotiate who gets the new ship?
This is followed by the clutter of dice as the pair gamble for the captains hat. Sandara whooping with glee as she rolls a natural to Rosie's low roll.
Sandara asks for a few friends from the Unbound drake to serve with her on her new ship, checking with Markizio that they are available.
She salutes Marnir with a blinding grin splitting her lovely face. "Thank you Captain! Truly Besmara was watching over me when she bought you aboard. I swear to follow your lead and serve faithfully."
It's a long, slow process tracking the path of the Brine banshee. Haneilius Fitch gives you her course from Ollo. She sailed north from the shabby port, making for a north east course past the Smoker and heading for Tempest key.
Every morning Fitch uses the ring with the bone to check how close you might be? On the morning of the 5th day he finally smiles. "Close, very close!" he reports excitedly to Markizio & Marnir.
Another couple of hours and under a bright morning sun, with clear skies the Unbound Drake drops anchor. 60' below you can just make out the wreck of a ship lying on her side amid stony outcrops rising out of the sandy sea floor, around it small sea plants grow in scattered clusters.
Your goal is under water. What are you doing now?
Markizio peered over the Drake and into the blue waters below to try and discern anything.
Anything other than just the drowned ship would be welcomed to see how they would approach this.
He then approached the officers and started planning out the salvage operations.
"Niobe, I think you should lead us as this is well within your element. I can transform into a merfolk or something like that to also have freedom of movement and water breathing capabilities."
He added, "I can also cast water breathing on all of us and that should give us plenty of time underwater. Something like four hour each. If we're not out in four hours then we're not coming out at all."
He turned to Niobe, "Now, do you feel safe enough to do a little scouting before we all go in? You have to be silent to not be seen and fast to rush towards the ship if you are seen so don't feel obligated."
"I'm a fast swimmer, but not a very sneaky one," Niobe says to Markizio. "But I've no objection to going ahead and seeing what I can find. I also have a water breathing spell that I can place on someone. But I feel safe enough - I can outswim a lot of predators. And I can use my magic to call for aid from the creatures of the sea, if needed."
Jane wakes up from he slight slumber. "I can both swim and sneak around. Do you want me to take a look instead?
Marnir smiles back at Sandara as she thanks him for her new command. "She's all yours, Captain Quinn. I'll go over the agreement with you later, the same as I did with Norva and Kyra, but for now you'd better see to getting her crewed and provisioned. She'll have to be squibbed sooner rather than later, and you'll probably want to change her name as well." He leaves Sandara to sort out her new ship with Markizio's help, and it isn't long before the former Dryad's Grave sets off to start her own adventure.
Finally, after many days of searching, Fitch declares that they are at their destination. The wreck is deep below, and Marnir listens to the more magically-inclined officers discuss a plan.
"I'd feel safer if Niobe took a quick look, particularly as she can swim and breathe without any magical help. I don't want something surprising us taking those powers away from those of us that rely on magic to function underwater."
Niobe nods and says, "I'll make a preliminary scouting check and let you know what I find." She leaps over the edge of the ship once more, shifting in the blink of an eye into her mermaid form, and splashing into the water only to propel herself under the waves at great speed.
As Niobe slips into the comforting waters she notices a problem immediately. The wreckage of the Brine Banshee is only half a ship. It rests on the edge of a rift, clearly the Banshee split in two with the stern falling into deeper waters, what you have discovered it the bow.
Circling the remains Niobe studies them carefully.
She knows that a wreck that has been here for the amount of time the Banshee has will have inhabitants by now and looks for signs.
What she notices is worse, from the corner of her eye she sees movement and turns to see a pack of Bull sharks heading for her, lead by a Merman?
Niobe you have 2 rounds before the sharks reach you. What are you doing.
Those still aboard the Drake can make perception checks.
Marnir watches as Niobe shifts into her natural form, continually surprised by how easily she shifts her shape.
He tries to follow as she disappears beneath the waves, but her colouring makes spotting her from on deck increasingly difficult as she swims deeper.
A little bit put off by now being allowed to go swim, Jane goes up to the top of the mast with Data. Stretches her new wings and starts to fly around the ship. Somewhat trying to figure out her new abilities.
Ready to jump in at a moment's notice, Markizio kept his eyes focused on the lithe swimmer under the waters.
------------
Kung keeps his head hanging over the gunwale, eyeing the waters for Niobe and trying to keep track of the activity under water. He tries to stay close to Markizio, in case he needs to dive in quickly.