"Tea? Yes...I'd love some tea. Why don't you all come in and we can drink?"
"There seems to be a problem. There are quite a lot of traps, and some of us are quite clumsy. We wouldn't want to ruin your very nice traps by stumbling over them - perhaps you could disable them for a bit?"
"But the traps keep me safe...I haven't seen the THINGS in days but I know they're just trying to trick me."
He seems to wrestle with himself for a moment and then speaks again.
"If...if I leave, will you protect me until I can get back?"
"Sure, why not?" Daliya muttered a little too loudly.
"You bet! Those "things" wouldn't dare cross us!"
"Of course."
His eyes narrow.
"Stay back! You're working for THEM aren't you!?!"
Krom sighs.
"Come on, buddy. Do you really think THEY would hire a ragtag bunch of misfits like us?"
Gurram lets out a bark of agreement, doing her best to look ragtag and misfit-like.
It doesn't work.
He eyes you suspiciously for a moment, then relaxes slightly.
"Well...they are kind of scruffy looking, and most of them seem none too bright..." he attempts to mutter to himself.
He cautiously makes his way out of the room.
"So, where's this tea?"
"Gremory is making some right now."
Gremory makes team and you all enjoy a nice cuppa.
"Got any biscuits?" he asks.
Once he seems calmed down (and provided with biscuits if we have them), Ixrul will ask him a question.
"Would you be interested in going to a place were we can exorcise the creatures that pursue you?"
"You'd do that for me? REALLY? I'd given up hope anyone would help me. Yes, what do we have to do?"
Ixrul asks his story.
"I think I should buy some nicer clothes for the feast. Something to show off how rich and successful we are."
"Also, maybe we could use this time to seek out Pierce and start forging an alliance."
I should think we need to hire a theater troop to perform. Yes. We would also need to be sure the food is fitting to the palates of our guests. I would speak with Kroop myself about the details, but, well. I do not want to be that close to him.
Pierce? Who would this be Krom? Evidently, if there's one skill I do possess, it would be making the right allies. I would be a great help if I knew more. She leans in towards Krom as she speaks.
"Right, you weren't around for this, were you? Pierce Jerrel is a Free Captain, and a sorcerer who specializes in enchantment spells. A while ago, he tried to convince dear old Jrahk to join forces with him. He did this by casting Charm Person on Jrahk and...flirting with him for a while." He laughs. "Imagine our surprise when Jrahk came back to the ship, grinning ear-to-ear, and trading suggestive remarks with this complete stranger."
"From Pierce's perspective, the charm was just a harmless practical joke. But Jrahk, being Jrahk, couldn't possibly laugh it off, and vowed never to have anything to do with Pierce.
"I think we should give Pierce another shot. We don't have many friends among our fellow Free Captains - again, thanks to Jrahk - and Pierce must have seen some potential in us if he was even interested in the first place."
Via treasure stitching, Ixrul can slowly transport the 10 plunder.
Additionally, there is 4225 GP worth of gems and art.
"Alcohol," Daliya added absently. "Half the pirates I've sailed with will chow down on rotten fish and biscuits if you can get them something half decent to drink. If we can supply enough high quality booze, we'll probably be a success."
"Good idea."
Those rules are in Campaign Info.
There's a table, but copying that would be a pain, so here's the gist of it: The smallest town will only buy your s&!& for 10% of its value by default, but you can increase it to 20% with a successful skill check (Starting at DC 10, going up by 5 for every 5% after the normal value, for all but the largest towns which go up by 10 for every 10%, but can be pushed to give you MORE than the base value). Every step up in town size will buy 10% more of your stuff by default and can be pushed up another 10% for smaller towns, 20% for medium sized towns, or even 40% for large cities. The largest city size (Metropolis) will buy 100% of your Plunder by default, and can be pushed to 140% with a check.
The loot list is correct, but add these items:
A potion of Heroism
-A Ring of Sustenance
-An anchor, made of bone and skulls. It detects as magical.
-A wand (made of bone) of False Life (23 charges)
-A bigass diamond (1000 gp)
-A jeweled headdress(800 gp)
-A jade necklace (350 gp)
-A darkwood mask, carved to look like the face of a Skum (100 gp)
-A lot of alcohol, ivory, whale oil, and other loot adding up to 10 Plunder.
The anchor is:
SKELETON ANCHOR Aura moderate necromancy; CL 7th Slot none; Price 14,450 gp; Weight 100 lbs. DESCRIPTION
This ship's anchor is crafted offused bones and skulls, but it has the strength and hardness of iron. When attached to a ship by a
rope or chain and dropped into the water, the anchor increases its weight to properly anchor the ship it is attached to.
Once per day, the skeleton anchor can hold the ship it is attached to immobile for up to 1 day, or until commanded to release.
The greatest property of a skeleton anchor, however, is to summon undead skeletons from the corpses of drowned mariners, who rise from the depths ofthe sea and clamber up the sides of the ship to serve as its crew. The undead created by the anchor are 1 Hit Die skeletons (Pathfinder RPG Bestiary 250) that possess Profession (sailor) scores of +7. Each skeleton can perform the duties of one crew member but has no other abilities. The skeletons cannot speak, attack, or even defend themselves. They are not proficient with any weapons or armor. The skeletons obey the commands of the ship's captain or pilot, but they only obey orders pertaining to the operation of a ship.
A skeleton anchor can be used just once every 7 days to create up to 28 skeletal crew members. The skeletons do not count against the maximum total Hit Dice worth of undead creatures that the user can control. The skeletons act as crew for 1 week or until dismissed by the ship's captain or pilot. At the end of the week, the skeletons abandon the ship.
CONSTRUCTION Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, desecrate, levitate, skeleton crew (Pathfinder Player Companion: Pirates of the Inner Sea 29); Cost 7,250 gp
Ixrul talks up the treasure.
A month and a half passes, and with Ederleigh back to normal (mostly, he is still a trap obsessed wizard) the fort's restoration has come apace, with a few ornamental upgrades besides at your orders.
An unfamiliar brig appears one day, flying a pirate's flag, but also the flag of truce. They row a boat out to shore, and a pair of pirates inform you that they are part of Pierce Jerrell's crew, and their captain has come to talk some business (and perhaps pleasure) with your crew.
Ixrul gives them permission to dock.
At some point during that time, Krom has Ixrul craft an Eidolon Anchoring Harness.
"Someone will have to break the news to him that his boyfriend is dead. I volunteer!"
Pierce's ship docks and he walks down the catwalk to meet you.
"Hello everybody! Well, almost everybody. Where's Big Sexy? I've got something he might want to hear."
Krom places himself at the front of the group, almost overshadowing Ixrul in the process.
"It saddens me beyond measure to tell you that Captain Jrahk has perished. He touched a magical stone he shouldn't have, and now his soul is trapped forever. Ixrul has taken on the role of captain."
Gremory can't help but notice her shipmates eagerness to speak with this new captain. She doesn't say anything, but she keeps a subtle eye on them.
"Yes, as Krom says, Jrahk has, for all intents and purposes, passed on."
Pierce pouts, for just a moment.
"Ah well. The strapping ones are usually lacking in the brains department, I suppose it's to be expected."
Pierce straightens up, all business now.
"Well, I still like you guys, and you might still be interested. I was in Hell Harbor last week and overheard a nice little tidbit about a smuggling run set up by Endymion. Out there, right now, is a ship full of he finest Chelaxian rum. All you have to do is intercept his ship and take it. Interested in the details?"
"Perhaps, though I am hesitant to make an enemy of a powerful pirate lord."
"Ah, but that's the best part. The smuggler, Fargo Vitterande, is strogly suspect to be a Chelaxian spy. The other pirate lords are already suspicious of Endymion. You could leverage this in multiple ways. If Endymion is not secretly still allied with Cheliax, and hates spies from there as much as he claims, you could gain his favor by taking out a spy in his midst. If you can instead find proof, or sufficient enough evidence to manufacture proof of Endymion's involvement with the Empire, you could work towards removing him from the board completely. But, of course, the choice is yours. Perhaps you do not wish to rock the boat...or maybe you want to make a strong impression as you enter the scene?"
Ixrul smiles slowly. "You should have said so in the first place. Where can we intercept this ship?"
"It departs from Hell Harbor tomorrow, my sources tell me. It's scheduled to stop on the Rampore Isles to drop off some cargo, and presumably restock water, then head on to Cheliax. It would be next to impossible to intercept the ship once it leaves the Shackles; The Jester's Grin is quite fast, maneuverable, and relatively small. I'd suggest cutting it off before it can get to Ghrinitsahara port on the Isles. Once it gets there it will be harde to attack without turning the port's authorities against you, and once it leaves it will be very hardto catch it again."
Krom grins. "Finally, a chance to show off my piloting skills!"
"I am amenable. Let us head out as soon as possible."
Daliya turned to Ixrul and murmured. "I think our best bet is an ambush. If we can check the charts for the likely wind direction, we can position the ship off Rampore in a favourable position. We can wait on the island itself, and when they depart, teleport back to the ship."
"Sounds like a plan to me."
"They will likely leave at a scheduled time - they are acting as a cargo ship, after all - so I doubt expending a teleport will be necessary."