Nali tries to gauge if the apparition speaks truth.
With the apparition talking, things are slightly normalised. And Nali asks:
"You seem to have been our saving hero, then, thank you. Is Leanna dead, now? Or has she fled? Or both? And was she working alone?"
If the apparition immediately responds, she waits for his answer and then asks the following. If not, she immediately follows up with:
"And also... What supplies in the hold would survive water? Perhaps you could take a look? You can hardly drown twice, I'd say.
Henris is nonplussed. "Ieana? How? No true Varisian would do that. She must have been a Sczarni." Henris spits after he says "Sczarni". "Thieves, con men, and tricksters all. Although why she'd want to be stranded on Smuggler's Shiv is beyond me. Do you know if she is still alive? What about Captain Kovack?"
Thraxis frowns "I talked with Ieana during the voyage. She was interested in ancient ruins, as was I. She didn't seem keen on company however. I tried talking with her about her research on more than one occasion but she never seemed interested in sharing her research."
He is pensive for a moment "Its impressive that she managed to engineer this mutiny by herself. She must be a potent enchantress, and possibly necromancer as well. Do you recall if running the ship onto the reef was her intent? If you were able to get us off the ship, what happened to her during the mutiny?"
"So Ieana is the one to blame. When I find her she will regret this!
Thank you Alton, I will not forget your kindness. I'm sorry you suffered such a fate, but why are you here? Why haven't you moved on?"
@nali- "Your welcome. You were my crew it was my duty, Sorry little one, I don't seem able to leave this room. It must be because i spent so much of my life here. I ask one sailor to another please bury my body if you find it below. I think then I'll be able to rest."
@Henris- " Both fled on the other rowboat when the ship got caught, I believe they are still alive even though I don't know for sure."
@Thraxis- " from what I understand, it was her that poisoned you, with a disguise spell to look like Romblar, because she was wearing his face when she came up. I saw her on the Rowboat with the captain and two other crew. Only Verus was left when i exited the boat before they were able to leave. He fought them to a standstill killing several of his fellow shipmates. when they escaped while I was rowing, I saw Verus jumping into the surf after them but lost track of where they went besides them going south."
@Roland- "I have heard through word of mouth this island has some unusual characteristics, That's why most ship avoid this place. there are rumors of Green lights in the skies around the Island, walking dead, and those that explore the island are never found again."
"You keep saying you're sorry. I don't think you should be. You seem to have done all you can for the group. As to burying your body, you pose us with a conundrum. I'd like to reciprocatively bury your body, but it's in a flooded hold with dangerous creatures abound. I don't think you'll want to have saved us, only to lose us to an attempt in laying you to rest, right? Also, our prize for our good deed would mainly be that you would be no longer able to give us advice, like you are doing now. What incentive could you name for us to risk life and limb for you, currently?"
Roland ponders Alton's words as well as Nali's response. "I hate to say it Alton, but a lot of what Nali has said is true. I'd carry your body to shore to be buried, but swimming down to grab your body has a good chance of getting us killed. Can you check to be sure that the way is clear and safe? Also, we can't bee here too long, we have to get back to shore before the tide comes in and we need to get as many supplies off the ship as we can."
Almon ponders. "I wonder if she has any plans for getting off this island, once she's done whatever she came here for. I'd think not - if she had a boat of her own, why not just come here in that instead of causing us all this bother."
"I suppose we'd best find her if we can. I'd also like to convey my displeasure at being marooned. Plus the captain and other crew will be of use in finding a way off, if we can free them."
"Taking the body to shore is no problem, once we retrieve it. We can return tomorrow if time runs short today."
To Alton's spirit, "I don't suppose you know anything of Jask, the prisoner? He doesn't seem so dangerous as to require the chains. Do you know where the captain kept the key for them?"
@nali- "I suppose you can take anything that is on my body as payment, just please leave my locket, It's of my mother."
@Roland- "I cannot leave the room. I have tried. I'm not going anywhere."
@Almond- "Thank you Master Farrel, Check the Captains Chest. he keeps most of his prized possesions in there."
Thraxis frowns at Nali's suggestion that they leave the man in his current state. He addresses Alton's spirit "Thank you for all the assistance you have given us. We are in your debt and I can think of no better way to repay your kindness than to relieve you of your abhorrent condition. I will see that your body is properly dealt with so that you can take your final journey to the Boneyard."
Undeath was an abomination. The body torn from the natural cycle of death and rebirth while the soul was denied its judgement in Pharasma's courts. It was his duty to see that Almon was laid properly to rest and the natural order put to right.
He turns to Almon "Whether today or tomorrow, I will do what I can to assist in the body's recovery. I am concerned about the rumors of this island though, if there is indeed some curse which causes the dead to rise of their own accord it would explain the cook and Alton's return to undeath."
He paused for a moment "If those sea scorpions have taken up residence in the flooded hold, it would benefit us to take them now, while they are on dry land rather than attempt to deal with them in the water."
Nali makes a half turn to speak to the party. "You're right, Thraxis, We don't know for how long they might be eating. And they might be a little more sluggish, now. Killing them now would mean we have more than an hour left to finish our business here. It might even make recovering Alton's body easy."
Then turns back to Alton." °Alton, I don't know if we'll speak again. It's a shame you don't know of any loot hidden on the ship and don't have a treasure buried, somewhere. Now, all we'll dig in your name is your grave. Are you sure you don't want to be burned? What with all the corpses rising and all. You're in quite the unique position to weigh the decision yourself."
Nali makes ready for combat.
Henris nods, as well. "We will do what we can to ensure your body is laid to rest. Thank you for saving us, and we will do our best to honor your sacrifice."
Henris also thinks of what he knows of these sea scorpions.
A look of disgust passes over Roland's face as he thinks of what teh see creatures are feasting on. "We should probably go deal with them while they are still distracted."
"ok, let's see if we can sneak up on them. I'll go first.
Nali moves through the adjacent room towards the scorpions. The closer she gets, the stealthier she moves. Her intention is to have a surprise round on her side to make a partial charge, but with the rest of the party close by to swoop in.
@thraxis- My thanks' Thraxis."
Alton wishes you all goodbye and good luck, he will wait word, and with that he vanishes in a puff of smoke. (if you think of any other questions let me know)
Unfortunately Sea scorpions are rare in the world and you have a hard time knowing much more than the name and there are 5 variants- CR anywhere from CR1/3 to CR12
I moved your character Nali- (you can go first for the surprise round then ill role initiative. round 1-)
@thraxis- My thanks' Thraxis."
suprise round Go !!!
AC 14 (FF and Regular)
I regain one panache
I prepare opportune parry and riposte for the first attack against me.
That probably won't work, but if it does:
Almon shuffles through the door and to the side, leaving room for the more competent combatants to engage the scorpions.
Henris prays for Gozreh's blessing.
Roland, standing in the door way, takes a two handed swing at the scorpion in front.
I was waiting on Thraxis so ill be continuing.
After the surprise round, The creatures turn with a chittering, with their small claws and tail with stinger trying to hit both Nali and Roland. When nali comes forward to attack nali gets hit by a spine on their backs, Nali immediately sees that anyone attacking with a light weapon or natural attacks take auto damage from the spines.
Full attack, 2 claw, tail
Tactics-
Roland takes 2 hp damage from claw
Nali takes 1 hp damage from Tail plz make Fort save (DC 15; or roll d3 con; d2 dex, for 2 rounds or save)
Nali takes 6 Hp from spines from their backs.
Heroes Round #1 Go!!
Almon steps up and tries to feint threateningly at one of the scorpions to allow Roland an easier strike.
first
I'm not using a light weapon, I'm using a one handed weapon. May I assume that the spine damage is negated?
second
The first hit against me was a to hit roll of 4. That means my parry roll of 10 did work, so I hit the scorpion with my riposte, for 7 damage.
third
The scorpion now recieved a total of 18 damage from me (11+7).Is that enough to kill it? If it is, it never gets to hit me with its tail, because it is already dead.
fourth
If the scorpion had more than 18 hp, I do get hit with the tail. So
Thraxis waited as the others engaged the sea scorpions. His spell selection was limited and had been meant for other purposes today, none o f them would help in this situation.
Given the option between doing nothing and attempting something regardless of how unlikely it was to work, he opted to sling one of his magic stones into the melee:
Ok- here is the adjustments after looking into everything,
@Nali- you said you were going to parry, So you parry the attack and hit. killing the scorpion. (only one left, see map.)
@Nali- the spines don't effect you either.
The Poison while still legit is not that strong. Since it didn't hit I wont say what it is yet, I don't want to spoil the suspense.
Roland, sorry you still took the hit from a claw.
Nali has used 2 panache for parry and riposte, so has 1 left.
She tries to pierce the remaining scorpion (flanking and blessed)
Nali regains a panache point. Now has 2 again.
Nali makes a 5' step 'down' on the map, to stand where the first scorpion stood.
Nali prepares opportune parry and riposte if she gets attacked with a tail attack. Since that's unlikely, I won't roll it yet.
@nali- you jumped to your second round actions, so ill use that after I post their attack- (that will end the encounter, because they need to go before yall do. I was waiting on seeing Rolands and henris attack before rolling.)
Roland is dazed by the creatures attack, when suddenly one of the creatures come forward and attacks him, the party sees Nali coming to the rescue but to late you see the sea scorpions stinger go into Roland. before being stabbed by Nali killing it, once and for all. three now dead sea scorpions lay around the dead body they were feeding on.
Almon relaxes a little once Nali skewers the final beasty. "Ah, excellent work." He bends down, examining avoiding their spines as he examines them.
"Was someone saying these are edible? Seems like they'd require some preparation."
"any beast should be edible, when prepared well enough. I doubt they taste good, though. And we should take great care to remove their stomach, for their last meal isn't one I care to share with them.
We should remove their poison glands and preserve the poison from their sacs. The sacs at least, seem to be in their tails. Perhaps you and I should set to this task, while the rest search the last room on this deck and the leftover rooms on the upper deck?
Then, wheb we're all done, we can see what we can do about the hold last. I used to have a potion or air bubble, but it seems to be lost..."
Nali puts away her rapier, draws a dagger, and kneels down.
"Now,be careful of those spines"
With the sea scorpions defeated, Henris approaches Roland and says, "I see you are injured. Give me a moment and I'll see what I can do."
Henris prays, and a wave of healing energy washes out from him, healing the wounds of those who may be injured.
"Gah, that burns!" Roland calls out as the scorpion strikes him with it's tail. Before he can react and strike back Nali skewers it in the eye. Dang! She's good with that rapier, best not to fight her if I can avoid it.
"Thank you Nali, that was... impressive"
---
"I see you are injured. Give me a moment and I'll see what I can do."
Once the scorpions are dealt with Roland begins to inspect the wounds on his arms and legs when Henris channels healing energy and the wounds disappear. "Thank you, I am glad you are here. It would have taken a long time for those to heal on their own I'm sure. Since Nali and Almon are going to be busy with those things for a bit, let's go and check out what we can."
Nali chitters in an upset way, before she exclaims: "Oh, no, Roland, the stinger got you! Are you okay?"
As the priest chants and Roland's wounds close by magic, Nali strokes her left hand over where the wounds were.
That works really well, Henris! Are you sure, you're ok, though, Roland? There might have been poison in that stinger! How do you feel?
Nali chitters in an upset way, before she exclaims: "Oh, no, Roland, the stinger got you! Are you okay?"
As the priest chants and Roland's wounds close by magic, Nali strokes her left hand over where the wounds were.
That works really well, Henris! Are you sure, you're ok, though, Roland? There might have been poison in that stinger! How do you feel?
Roland smiles, "I'm fine, thanks to Henris. I'm pretty tough, the sting burned for a while, but I think it's going away. Be careful you don't sting yourself though while you work on those things."
With the last scorpion skewered Thraxis examines the beasts. He offers suggestions and what assistance he can with recovering any edible parts and the poison as well.
"Since we are going to take one corpse back, we may as well take the cook's as well and make sure that he doesn't arise once again. If Roland is feeling fine we can proceed below decks and finish up here."
"Let's check the rest of the cabins first - both the one down here and the others up top."
Roland joins Henris as they move to the cabin next to Alton's leading the way in case any new dangers appear. Once inside he begins to search it.
Henris looks over the cabin, as well.
As they continue searching through other parts of the ship Thraxis tells Roland "Though the wound is healed, keep an eye on it. Mended flesh does not mean the danger is over. In this environment disease is also a threat. Keep an eye on it and if it turns red or becomes painful again let Henris or I know."
"Thank you Thraxis, I will do that. his whole place has me on edge. I don't like it. Thraxis, where are you from, I saw you on the ship, but we never spoke much. The jungle doesn't seem to bother you at all."
Thraxis turns in the direction of land for a moment, despite the fact they are below decks. "No, the jungle does not bother me. There are dangers to be sure, perhaps more than other wilds I have been in, but the rules are the same: respect the jungle and its denizens. The jungle provides the water, food and shelter. The animals provide the lessons to survive the dangers and take advantage of what is offered."
He turned back to Roland "But, as to where I'm from the answer would be the lands claimed by Taldor." he smiled "I have traveled much and am far from home Much like the woman who seems to be the one that engineered our current predicament, I am a scholar of the past. I was heading South to delve into the Expanse and explore the remnants of ancient civilizations that are rumored to be hidden within."
With a look of incredulity Roland says, "Well, I can't say I see the jungle the same way. To me it's a dangerous place full of stuff I don't know anything about. I'll be glad when we can get away from here. Maybe you can teach me some though until then.
What would you want with a bunch of old ruins? Taldor's a long ways from here."
Almon assists in turning over the rooms.
" Ah, now ruins are fascinating for all sorts of reasons for different people. There's always something interesting about how ancient people lived, and why their civilisations died. Some people want to discover rumoured secrets of lost powers - whether or not they actually existed. There are also those who will pay a good price just to own something that was made thousands or years ago - that's why I was heading out this way myself."
In Verus's Room (the navigator) the party sees many maps of the Shackles, the inner see and several other places that the jenivire might go. You see that many of the maps are on the floor and thrown around the room, as if someone went through it in a hurry. The chest is open and things are thrown out of it. On the desk there appears to be a book half-written and not completed on animals found in the ocean and in the jungle. Along with several drawings, some of a unknown city in the jungle not named. everything of value has been taken except for the maps, that could be sold to a collector or the book.
Henris looks over the maps. "Well, if we are able to flag down a ship to get off this island, we may be able to trade these for passage. Otherwise, someone ransacked this room - Iaeana, perhaps?"
"I wonder what they were looking for? Well, if we are going to keep these we need to keep them dry. Does anyone have something we can use lighter than the chest?" Roland says. He stands restless ready to keep searching, but he understands maps have value, and so he waits.
"As Almon said, ruins are a window into the past. Just as you can read a corpse and glean knowledge about how a creature used to live and how it died, so to can you learn from the past through the ruins of a deceased city. Knowing how a settlement lived and then died tells a fascinating story and teaches lessons that can be applied to the future."
"The maps will be invaluable if we find a way off the island. Are there any details on this island? Even if just a rough shape or size it could help us"
"You're right, Thraxis. Any map of even the shores of this island could be helpful."
Henris looks through the maps for one of Smuggler's Shiv.